SEA SHOWDOWN: U.S TARGETS ‘RUSSIAN' VESSELS

BRITAIN has backed America’s storming of a sanctions-busting Russian-flagged tanker in a dramatic high-seas showdown.

- BY CHRIS HUGHES LUCY READE and ASHLEY COWBURN

A UK spy plane and other assets helped to pinpoint the location of the Bella 1 in the North Atlantic.

And tiny Wick John O'Groats airport, in Caithness, was used by American military aircraft.

US officials confirmed they had taken control of the ship which they had been pursuing since last month after it tried to evade an American blockade on sanctioned oil vessels around Venezuela

Russia had deployed a submarine to protect the tanker due to its links to Venezuela and Moscow's ally Iran.

The UK claimed it was involved in the operation because the Bella 1 was involved in backing terrorism.

Russia's transport ministry said its seizure violated maritime law, with politician Andrei Klishas branding it "outright piracy".

A second sanctioned tanker was seized by US troops near the Caribbean. The high-seas drama between western militaries and Russian forces could risk a major escalation.

Moscow is furious that Nato countries such as the UK have been funnelling money and arms into Ukraine to help it defend against Russia’s invasion.

Ministry of Defence officials confirmed UK airbases were used as launchpads for the US special forces and Coast Guard operation, and that British forces supported the storming of the vessel Bella 1.