Britain is falling behind its European allies in confronting the “very real” threat posed by Russia, the head of the UK military has warned.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton told the FT that the UK needs to “catch up with our European allies” who, he said, are more awake to the Kremlin’s mounting appetite for risk.
“This is the most dangerous period I’ve known in my adult life,” the chief of the defence staff, 57, said, adding: “That threat - principally from Russia, but more broadly globally - is rising.”
Sir Richard assessed that Moscow was increasingly tolerant to risk and told the newspaper that the term “hybrid activity” no longer captured the scale of Russia’s alleged disruptions.
“We’re talking about targeted assassinations, we’re talking about sabotage, we’re talking about cyber attacks,” he said. “These are very real, real things [by] the Russian state we have proof of in Europe and to some extent in the UK.”
European security officials only this week said they were investigating whether a series of bomb threats against European airlines and news organisations originated in Russia.
A cross-border investigation between intelligence and security agencies to trace the origin of the threats is under way, intelligence officials told the FT, stressing that there is still a long way to go before attribution can be made.
Some in the community were confident regardless that Russia was the most likely culprit, the newspaper reported. Russia has previously denied involvement in hybrid attacks on European soil.
Sir Richard said that the British state will now have to explain the Russian threat to the public while trying to justify spending more on defence.
Sir Richard also told the BBC on Sunday that he was responding to the government’s call for households to stockpile water and food supplied amid growing concern about disruption from hostile states.
Asked what is in his emergency kit at home, he said he had been considering that with his wife and spent the weekend clearing out cupboards to discover “there's a lot of tins in the Knighton household”.
“I put some extra shelves in,” he added, “and this is something, though, we should all be thinking about.
“Our first line of defence for the nation are our emergency services - who do a phenomenal job - and the armed forces. But all of us can play a part in readying ourselves.”
Writing for The Independent last month, Sir Richard urged that Europe must take greater responsibility for its own defence as war returns to the continent and shows that security can no longer be taken for granted.
“Russia’s war against Ukraine has demonstrated the importance of military readiness, industrial capacity and national resilience,” Sir Richard said.
“It has also reinforced the need for European nations to strengthen their defence capabilities and assume greater responsibility for their collective security.”
“This is not about preparing for war. It is about preventing it,” he said, adding: “History has repeatedly shown that weakness can invite aggression, while strength preserves peace.
“The purpose of deterrence is simple: to convince our adversaries that the costs of aggression will far outweigh any potential gain.”
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