The Russian warship Neustrashimy, which was being escorted by vessels of the British Royal Navy, conducted live-fire drills on Monday 40 nautical miles (about 74 km) from the city of Plymouth, BBC reports.

An official representative of the UK Ministry of Defence said that British warships continue to “closely monitor the movements” of the Russian frigate.

According to the BBC, Neustrashimy was also tracked by a French military aircraft, which established radio contact with it and asked it to clarify its intentions.

Sources said that Neustrashimy warned the British patrol ship HMS Tyne that it intended to conduct live-fire exercises.

The Russian ship demanded that HMS Tyne move away to a safe distance, which it did. The firing took place in international waters and lasted 30 minutes.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov assured that the Kremlin sees no political undertones in holding the exercises off the coast of the United Kingdom on the first day of new Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s tenure, Vedomosti reports.