The British defense secretary told Parliament that the Yantar, which he described as a Russian spy ship, had come near Britain’s coast for the second time in a few months.

The British navy said Wednesday that is ramping up measures to protect its waters from secret Russian operations after identifying a Russian spy vessel in UK waters for the second time in weeks.

The United Kingdom has confirmed that one of its Royal Navy nuclear-powered submarines surfaced close to the Yantar, a notorious Russian spy ship late last year, to make it clear it was being observed.