US Coast Guard patrol spots Russian military ship off Alaska islands

JUNEAU, Alaska — A U.S. Coast Guard officer on routine patrol in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands encountered a Russian vessel in international waters, but within the U.S. exclusive economic zone, officials said.

The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Alex Haley spotted the ship Monday about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of Amukta Pass, the Coast Guard said in a statement Friday. A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak also spotted the ship.

The vessel was sailing “in international waters, but still within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone,” which extends 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) from the U.S. coastline, the statement said.

The coast guard ship did not make contact with the Russian vessel but followed it as it headed east, the statement said.

“We met presence with presence to ensure there were no disruptions to U.S. interests in the maritime environment around Alaska,” Alex Haley Commander Steven Baldovsky said in the statement.

In July, the Coast Guard Spotted Four Chinese Military Vessels During Patrol north of the Amchitka Pass in the Aleutian Islands, in international waters but also within the U.S. exclusive economic zone, officials said.

Russian and Chinese bombers Later that month, they flew together for the first time in international airspace off the coast of Alaska, a new sign of growing military cooperation that U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said at the time was a cause for concern.

The flights were not considered a threat, and the bombers were tracked and intercepted by American and Canadian fighter jets. But it was the first time that Chinese bombers had flown inside the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone. And it was the first time that Chinese and Russian aircraft had taken off from the same base in northeastern Russia.