British warships escort Russian ships through English Channel

London and Moscow: Not the best of friends

Tensions between the UK and Russia began with the Russian annexation of Crimea which was part of Ukraine and Moscow's support for Ukranian rebels fighting the central government.

Add to that the backing for Assad militarily by putting Russian planes in the air and Russian troops on the ground.

As an ally of the United States and a member of NATO, the UK is obligated to confront Moscow along with other NATO nations wherever a threat is perceived.

London: An earlier escort for Russian ships

Russian warships sailed through the English Channel back in January and Royal Navy warships escorted Putin's armada. The Russian warships featuring the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov plus support vessels were heading to support their forces aiding Assad in Syria.

At the time the state of the aged aircraft carrier was discussed in UK papers as many times when the ship had been at sea it had apparently broken down. Naval experts said the fact that the aircraft carrier had a lot of steam coming out of its funnel was a sign the ship was not being well maintained.

London deploys Type 23 Frigates again

From their base in Plymouth which has been a naval base ever since Francis Drake fought the Spanish Armada the Royal Navy has been deployed again to shadow Russian vessels.

This time two more Russian warships were sailing through the Channel obviously heading for Syria. The Royal Navy sailed close to the Russian warships and their attendant vessels keeping them under observation.

The Russian ships Steregushyi class warships skirted the English coast and Michael Fallon Defence Secretary along with top Royal Navy officers said the observation and tracking of the Russian ships were standard procedure.

Of course, tensions have really come to the boil since Trump launched his Tomahawk missiles on Assad's air base.

Trump did this because of an alleged chemical weapons attack on a town in Syria blamed on Assad's air force killing and injuring many civilians. For its part, the Syrian air force blamed rebels in the area for the chemical attack released when bombs dropped hit an alleged chemical weapons factory.

The US, UK, and France plus other allies ultimately blame the Russians for supporting and shielding Assad allowing him to get away with literal murder. The world right now what with Syria and North Korea is at a dangerous pivotal moment in history perhaps.