Turkish vessel forced to change direction by Russian Black Sea corvette

The Turkish vessel got in the way of a Crimean oil and gas firm's boats which were towing oil rigs

The vessel was reportedly flying a Turkish flag (Rex Features)

A Turkish vessel has been forced to change direction in the Black Sea by a Russian corvette.

The incident took place after the ship - reportedly flying a Turkish flag - got in the way of Crimean oil and gas firm Chernomorneftegaz’s boats which were towing oil rigs.

A coast guard boat was also used to force it to change course, Reuters and Today's Zamen reported.

According to TASS news agency, Chernomorneftegaz said: "In the path of the convoy of vessels with a hauled object there emerged an unidentified commercial ship flying the Turkish flag. Acting in breach of international regulations of forestalling a collision of ships and agreed standards of maritime traffic, the Turkish vessel did not give way to the cross-running convoy and attempted to stop on its sailing line, creating an intentionally emergency situation."

The company said the "commander of the Turkish ship did not connect with the convoy vessels using radio exchange and did not respond to calls".

The rigs were delivered to the Russian territorial maritime belt.

On Sunday, a Russian destroyer fired warning shots at a Turkish fishing ship to prevent a collision in the Aegean Sea, the country's Defense Ministry said. The ship changed course and passed within 540 meters of the guided missile destroyer Smetlivy.

The Russian vessel had been unable to establish radio contact with approaching Turkish ship, which also did not respond to visual signals and flares.

It comes after Turkey downed a Russian warplane along the Syrian border in November, straining relations between the two countries.

Additional reporting by AP