The U.S. Coast Guard said Thursday that it had detected and tracked a Russian intelligence-gathering vessel off the coast of Hawaii late last month.
Coast Guard personnel conducted “a safe and professional overflight and transiting near” the Russian ship Kareliya on Oct. 29 using a patrol plane and a small ship, the service said in a statement.
The Kareliya was said to have operated roughly 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of the island of Oahu, outside U.S. territorial waters, which extend 12 miles from the coastline under international law.
“Acting in accordance with international law, Coast Guard personnel are monitoring the Russian vessel’s activities near U.S. territorial waters to provide maritime security for U.S. vessels operating in the area and to support U.S. homeland defense efforts,” the service said.
Such monitoring is routine and is conducted in cooperation with other U.S. military and other government agencies, said Captain Matthew Chong, chief of response for the U.S. Coast Guard’s Oceania District.
The Kareliya, part of Russia’s fleet of six active intelligence-gathering Vishnya-class ships, is part of the Russian Navy’s Pacific Fleet. It was previously spotted near the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 2021, and then again near the U.S. island chain in 2022.
Launched in 1986, the Kareliya was refitted and upgraded with modern capabilities in 2017, according to the news outlet Maritime Executive.
Russia’s Defense Ministry has not commented on the U.S. Coast Guard’s statement on the latest tracking of the Kareliya.
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