Russian Cargo Ships Spy, Says Dicks Representative Charges That Vessels Keep An Eye On Trident Submarines

The Kapitan Man and two other Russian merchant vessels that call in Tacoma are part of a fleet of spy vessels used to track U.S. Trident nuclear submarines based at Bangor, Rep. Norm Dicks said Thursday.

“There is no doubt in my mind these ships are monitoring U.S. submarines,” he said. “There is too much evidence to prove otherwise.”

Dicks’ comments came as the Kapitan Man was again tied to a Tacoma dock unloading and loading cargo. One of the Russian ships calls at the Port of Tacoma roughly every two weeks.

Dicks, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, has received two “lengthy” classified briefings on the activities of the Russian ships, including an April 4 incident in which the Kapitan Man was suspected of firing a laser that injured a U.S. naval officer flying aboard a Canadian surveillance helicopter.

The Pentagon said Thursday after a three-month investigation it still wasn’t sure whether the eye injury suffered by U.S. Navy Lt. Jack Daly on April 4 was caused by a laser beam from the Kapitan Man. A later search of the vessel turned up no sign of a laser.

While Dicks said he wasn’t sure how Daly was injured, he’s convinced the Russians are up to something.

“These Russian ships operate in a highly suspicious way and I base this on some of the evidence shared with me,” Dicks said.

Dicks also raised the possibility that other foreign vessels, specifically those operated by the Chinese, may also be spying.

“It’s not only Russian ships which act in curious ways when our ballistic subs go by,” he said. “It would be very wise to keep track of the Chinese.”

Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacon said Thursday that U.S. and Canadian military personnel routinely track not only Russian vessels entering the Strait of Juan de Fuca, but also Chinese ships.

“We perform routine surveillance with the Canadians all the time,” Bacon said.

The Kapitan Man, along with the Anatoliy Kolesnichenko and the Anadir, are operated by the Russian-owned Far Eastern Shipping Co. While the three Russian vessels frequently call in Tacoma, the Chinese vessels dock at the Port of Seattle.

“I am very concerned about this, and the Navy needs to be very alert,” Dicks said, adding that because Puget Sound is considered an open port there is little the Navy can do to stop the surveillance. Dicks said the Tridents, which carry 24 nuclear-tipped missiles and are considered the most lethal weapon in the U.S. arsenal, may have to start transiting the Strait of Juan de Fuca submerged instead of on the surface as they now do.

A brief Pentagon summary of a classified report on the Kapitan Man laser incident released Thursday added little new information and left a lot of questions unanswered.

“You have to describe this as a mystery,” said Bacon.

Bacon sought to downplay suggestions the administration wanted to gloss over the incident so as not to upset U.S.-Russian relations.

“I don’t think there is any effort to absolve the Russians in complicity with this or anything else,” Bacon said, adding “not all things are answerable and this is one of them.”

Pentagon officials had originally said the Canadian helicopter carrying Daly was on a routine maritime patrol when it flew over the Kapitan Man. But Bacon admitted Thursday the CH-124 “Sea King Helicopter” was on a surveillance mission.

The USS Ohio, one of the Tridents, had just passed through the Strait of Juan de Fuca.