Sunday 8 May 2016

THE commander of a US nuclear submarine threatened to ram a Spanish customs vessel in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters

THE commander of a US nuclear submarine threatened to ram a Spanish customs vessel  in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters

Once again Spain has nearly caused an international incident! This time our Roya Navy had to warn off Spanish Vessel with Flares.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/05/royal-navy-fires-warning-shots-as-spanish-vessel-harasses-us-sub/

Royal Navy fires warning shots as Spanish vessel harasses US sub in Gibraltar
HMS Sabre and (inset) USS Florida
HMS Sabre and (inset) USS Florida CREDIT: LA(PHOT) STUART HILL/MOD/EPA
·          Ben Farmerdefence correspondent 
5 MAY 2016 • 12:14PM
The Royal Navy fired flares to warn off a Spanish patrol boat approaching an American nuclear submarine off Gibraltar.
The fast patrol boat HMS Sabre fired warning shots across the bow of a Guardia Civil vessel as it twice tried to cut across the path of USS Florida during an incursion into Gibraltar’s waters.
USS Florida
USS Florida CREDIT: US NAVY
Gibraltar says Spanish vessels regularly stray deep into its territorial waters and the Foreign Office has attacked the incursions as provocative.
But defence sources said it was rare for a Royal Navy vessel to fire flares and it had only happened a couple of times in the past two years.
A police boat patrols off Gibraltar
A police boat patrols off Gibraltar CREDIT: GEOFF PUGH
One Naval source said: "It just got too close and when it's a nuclear submarine, you get twitchy anyway. If you have responsibility for the protection of it, then you are going to take action much quicker than you might normally. The force protection measures worked and the vessel went away."
Officials in the British overseas territory have complained about the incident as USS Florida visited the British Naval base last month, the Sun reported.
Gibraltarians defiant over border rowPlay!02:40
Spain claims sovereignty over the strategic outpost, which stands on the southernmost tip of the Iberian peninsula, but has been a British Overseas Territory since the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713.
In recent years Madrid has warned it is ready to impose a new border tax, close its airspace to planes using the British overseas territory's airport, and investigate the affairs of Gibraltarians with Spanish economic interests.
The row escalated in 2013 after Gibraltar began building an artificial reef it said would improve fish stocks depleted by incursions by Spanish fishermen.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence declined to comment on nuclear submarine operations or force protection measures


What will our Governor do now? What will our Chief Minister do? What will Foreign Office do now? What are they all waiting for.... a death? An accident?

Wake up UK! Wake up Governor! Wake up Gibraltar!


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Courtesy:
http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/668135/Royal-Navy-unprecedented-actions-ordered-US-sub-stuck-Gibraltar-row?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

TRUTH behind the Gibraltar row: How US submarine threatened Royal Navy to act on Spain
THE commander of a US nuclear submarine threatened to ram a Spanish customs vessel trying to block its path unless the Royal Navy vessel escorting it took action.
US NAVY•CROWN
Captain Nathan Martin and sub
The US nuclear submarine threatened to ram a Spanish customs vessel trying to block its path
Last week it emerged that a Royal Navy patrol boat fired warning flares across the bow of the Spanish vessel during the altercation just outside Gibraltar waters.
It has now been revealed that the Royal Navy’s unprecedented actions were ordered by USS Florida’s no-nonsense captain Nathan Martin who warned the Royal Navy to sort the situation out or he would intervene.
It was the first of two such actions by Spanish vessels that day.
The second, in British waters, involved a Garda Civil police boat.
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The US submarine was making a routine visit to Gibraltar’s submarine base on April 16.
It had already surfaced but was still in international waters when its path was intercepted by a Spanish customs vessel.
Strict security protocols, partly prompted by the successful Al Qaeda attack on the US destroyer USS Cole in 2000, require the captain of any US warship to prevent uninvited vessels from getting too close to their ship.
Despite being escorted by the Royal Navy patrol boat HMS Sabre, the Spanish vessel crossed the submarine’s path several times.
Captain Martin was nearing the end of his 77-day operational tour on the submarine when the altercation took place.
A Royal Navy patrol boat
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A Royal Navy patrol boat fired warning flares across the bow of the Spanish vessel
Gibraltar
GETTY
The Royal Navy’s unprecedented actions were ordered by USS Florida’s captain Nathan Martin

There is no question from the report that he would have rammed the Spanish vessel
A senior Royal Navy source
Last night a senior Royal Navy source with access to the “After Action” report about the incident, sent to the First Sea Lord and senior operational commanders, said it was a very difficult and tense situation.
The source said: “The US commander was very concerned about his vessel and our officer was worried about sparking an international incident, a wrong decision could end your career in a situation like this and spark confrontation.
“The US has very strict protocols about vessels getting close to their nuclear submarines, in a very nononsense manner he made it clear he wanted things sorted or he would resolve the incident, and all he could do was ram the boat.
“It was a very tense situation. The Spanish had not responded to our transmissions on the emergency channel to steer away and the US commander was not prepared to wait any longer.
A Royal Navy patrol boat
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A senior Royal Navy source said it was a very difficult and tense situation
“He made it very clear in his radio transmission that he wanted our people to act, or he would sort the situation out himself and, while he remained polite, he was very direct in conveying the message that he wasn’t prepared to allow the Spanish vessel to continue harassing his boat.
“If our patrol boat had not fired flares, there is no question from the report that he would have rammed the Spanish vessel.”
Incredibly, Spanish authorities failed to heed the lesson. Later another Spanish boat belonging to the Garda Civil also harassed the submarine, this time in British waters.
No flares were fired on this occasion.

Last night Admiral Lord West, former First Sea Lord, said: “Nuclear submarines are very unmanoeuvrable when they are on the surface, and it is very stupid for the Spanish vessel to go in close like that. The Spanish clearly resent the Americans using Gibraltar, but this is not the way for a fellow EU and Nato member to behave.”
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The Sun newspaper states:
This is a very dangerous game for the Spanish to play and very unbecoming of a Nato ally to treat the US Navy with such contempt.
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We urge our Government to put the pressure on UK Government and the FCO and our Governor to protect our waters and to enforce a stronger security before we have a disaster!
Anne-Marie Struggles