El buque de la Marina Real Británica desplegado en el mar Negro para «enviar un mensaje a Rusia» carece de armamento pesado y no es capaz de defenderse de un ataque real, apuntó el medio The National Interest.Razon por la cual Rusia ni le dio la mas minima importancia cuando arribo,saben que bastara una simple lancha artillada rusa para dejarlo fuera de servicio,en palabras claras el HMS Echo,en lugar de dar proteccion,necesita ser protegido
El HMS Echo llegó a aguas ucranianas a principios de diciembre de 2018 con el objetivo de ayudar a Ucrania a enfrentarse a las supuestas ‘hostilidades rusas’. La embarcación, sin embargo, es un buque científico, no de guerra. Su misión principal es analizar el fondo marino.
Su armamento consta de dos cañones de calibre 20 milímetros, además de algunas ametralladoras, y es estrictamente defensivo, detalló National Interest. Es decir, el barco tiene menos armas que los buques ucranianos arrestados por guardias fronterizos rusos tras violar la frontera marítima del país.
Sputnik Mundo
The ship the British Royal Navy deployed to the Black Sea in order to send a message to Russia lacks heavy weaponry and could not defend itself from intensive attack.
HMS Echo, a 297-feet-long survey vessel, arrived in Ukrainian waters in early December 2018. «As long as Ukraine faces Russian hostilities, it will find a steadfast partner in the United Kingdom,» stated Gavin Williamson, the U.K. minister of defense.
Echo’s deployment came several weeks after Russian security forces illegally seized three Ukrainian navy boats attempting to pass through the narrow, Russian-controlled strait connecting the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov
Russian forces have been working to make the Azov Sea an internal Russian body of water in order to both cut off Ukraine’s eastern ports and cement Moscow’s hold on Crimea,» explained Damon Wilson, executive vice president of the Atlantic Council think tank.
Visiting Echo at the port of Odessa, Williamson characterized the survey ship’s presence in the region as a warning to Russian president Vladimir Putin. «What we are saying to Russia, what we are saying to President Putin — they cannot continue to act with no regard or care for international laws or international norms,» Williamson said.
But Echo is a science vessel, not a front-line warship. Her main mission is to map the seafloor. Her armament — two 20-millimeter cannons plus a few machine guns — is strictly defensive.
Echo is more lightly armed even than are the two Ukrainian navy gunboats that Russian forces seized in the Kerch Strait on Nov. 25, 2018. Russian boats blocked the Ukrainian ships’ passage through the strait while Russian attack planes and helicopters flew overhead.
Russian commandos boarded the Ukrainian gunboats and an accompanying tugboat and arrested their crews. The 24 Ukrainian sailors are still in Russian custody and could face long-term imprisonment.
The Black Sea is dangerous for warships. Russian warplanes routinely harass foreign vessels, conducting mock attack runs at high speed and low level