The Royal Navy has tracked six Russian ships returning from Syria in what the Ministry of Defence is describing as a “frantic withdrawal”.

       Three Russian warships and three merchant ships full of ammunition were shadowed as they sailed near UK waters and through the English Channel.

       Defence Secretary John Healey said the UK is “watching their every move”.

       Royal Navy ships RFA Tideforce, HMS Tyne, HMS Iron Duke and a Royal Air Force P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft were all involved in the mission.

       Satellite images last month appeared to show Russia withdrawing from a prized base on Syria’s Mediterranean coast following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

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       Assad was an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and fled to Russia.

       The UK says since the fall of Assad, Russia has been rushing to evacuate its military assets from Syria in a blow to its Middle East ambitions.

       Mr Healey added: “I’d like to praise our extraordinary service personnel for their professionalism in shadowing these vessels back to Russia.

       “These ships were retreating from Syria after Putin abandoned his ally Assad, yet they were still armed and full of ammunition.

       “This shows Russia is weakened but remains a threat. And not just in Ukraine. We are watching their every move.”

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       The British worked with the French and Dutch navies to escort the Russian ships from the Bay of Biscay through to the North Sea.

       Commanding Officer of frigate HMS Iron Duke, Commander David Armstrong, said: “This closely co-ordinated operation demonstrates our steadfast determination to protect our nation’s territorial seas and Critical National Infrastructure; on which our economic prosperity depends.

       “It is not enough to hope passing non-allied warships will not threaten our maritime security – we will be there to make sure they can’t”.

       The operation comes just weeks after the Navy tracked a Russian spy ship called Yantir through the Channel.

       It was the second time in a matter of months that the ship had been in UK waters.

       Mr Healey said the Yantir had previously been detected “loitering” over critical undersea infrastructure in November and ordered an attack submarine to surface in a rare warning to the Russian ship.