NATO chief Mark Rutte joked about a Russian submarine on Monday, but Moscow denied the ship was stranded due to technical problems.

The Russian submarine Novorossiysk was spotted in the English Channel off France, following a maritime navigation rule, and was being monitored by a UK warship and helicopter.

Dutch authorities announced on Saturday that the submarine had been spotted in the North Sea.

Speaking in Slovenia, Mark Rutte, who joked that the "broken" ship was "snapping"; said it appeared they were running around looking for a mechanic nearby.

"There are no Russian rescue ships left in the Mediterranean," Rutte added.

A Telegram page that publishes Russian security information has reported that a fuel leak on the Novorossiysk submarine on September 27th increased the risk of an explosion.

The Royal Navy said it had been tracking the ship for three days as it returned from a forced evacuation in the Mediterranean Sea.

Two weeks before this event, the UK Navy announced that it had monitored Russian ships until they left the English Channel.