Thread by @MarkGaleotti

Today’s #Russia press reaction to yesterday’s @HMSDefender/#BlackSea incident – a quick summary thread and a few observations 1/

Govt @rgrus runs comment from Konstantin Kosachev, dep. Senate Speaker:
was (UK?) bid “to prevent the recent reconciliation of positions and approaches, which was made presidents of Russia and the United States at the Geneva summit.” 2/
rg.ru/2021/06/24/kos…

Conversely, @izvestia_ru treats this rather blandly, really just running with the official govt statement from Dep FM Ryabkov, but also quoting UK’s denials 3/
iz.ru/1183446/2021-0…

Tabloid @kpru goes full tabloid: “The intruder (or rather, the criminal) ‘ran’ in our sea for almost 30 mins. And it's good that he escaped safe and sound… 4/
kp.ru/daily/28295/44…

"...[but] didn't the guards of our state cordon act too humanely with the provocateur and violator of the Russian border?” The risk, it is claimed, is that a clash could have led to a full-scale war with NATO! 5/

Alternatively, @mkomsomolets leads with a quote from a Russian naval officer, that it was a “typically British provocation” adding a typical back-handed jibe that "the British, I think, are professionals, despite their dilapidated fleet." Still... 6/
mk.ru/politics/2021/…

...presents UK as the sharpest end of NATO: “As for the British, they are not accidentally chosen for the role of provocateurs, because of their impudence, the colonial experience that has been accumulated over the centuries. But it's time to get over this already.” (Bless) 7/

The only thing @vesti__news adds is that “by some coincidence, a BBC journalist was on the destroyer” and claims (incorrectly) that he reported “that there were warning shots.” 8/
vesti.ru/article/2579416

I won't go on. Overall, what you’d expect. Claims
1) it was an illegal provocation,
2) that the UK narrative is both inaccurate and even undermined by the BBC and
3) UK is always the sharpest enemy in NATO.
All, I’d suggest, are wrong. But that’s just me. /end