A former defence minister has warned London and its critical infrastructure is “vulnerable” to Russian missile strikes threatening to cause catastrophe.
Tobias Ellwood, former chairman of the parliamentary defence committee, said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s missile technology has continued to modernise since he was last in government.
Meanwhile, he claimed Moscow’s fighter jets are acting with increasing aggression, making the chances of an attack more likely.
In a stark warning, he said Putin’s long-range missiles could reach the UK in just 30 minutes if launched from a base in its Urals region.
Mr Ellwood argued that Britain’s defences would struggle to cope if such an attack was launched.
He wrote in the Daily Mail: “As a former defence minister on the duty roster, I had to approve take off on more than one occasion – usually in response to Russian aircraft buzzing in our airspace. Today, the air threat looks far more hostile, complex and unpredictable.”
If Britain did come under attack, it would respond with its Quick Reaction Alert operation. This would involve scrambling RAF Typhoons to intercept incoming missiles.
Mr Ellwood claimed this alone would not be enough to keep Britain safe.
He added: “The latest generation of long-range missiles now travel faster (moving to hypersonic speeds), often on a parabola that takes them to the edge of space. In salvos, that would simply overwhelm any aircraft response.
“London is now vulnerable, as is every other city in the UK along with critical infrastructure such as airports and nuclear power stations.”
Mr Ellwood is not the only one who has raised the alarm over the potential vulnerability of Britain’s infrastructure.
Experts have also warned that Britain’s network of subsea cables, which help keep the lights on and internet connectivity running, could also be at risk of a covert Russian attack.
It comes after a suspected sabotage of underwater interconnectors in an area between Finland and Estonia following a blackout.
While Moscow denied involvement, the move raised fears that the UK could be vulnerable to a similar attack.
Emma Salisbury, an associate fellow at the London-based Council on Geostrategy, said: “Grey zone warfare of exactly this type is going to be a huge issue this year.
“Given the importance of subsea cables and other infrastructure to the UK’s energy needs, it’s an area where I could see a lot of threats coming to the fore in a very similar way to what we’ve seen in the Baltic.”
This comes at a time of high tensions between the West and Russia, which continues its aggression against Ukraine and has ramped up threats against Kyiv’s allies that are supporting the war-torn nation.
The Government has been preparing for a potential attack, with Britain and a group of allies launching a defence operation led by the Joint Expeditionary Force.
Under the plans, artificial intelligence will be used to seek out threats to subsea cables by tracking the movement of a “Russian shadow fleet”.
Defence Secretary John Healey announced on Monday: “The UK and JEF are leading the way in providing support to our allies to help safeguard the offshore infrastructure we all rely on against potential threats.”
The operation – dubbed Nordic Warden – would “help protect against both deliberate acts of sabotage as well as cases of extreme negligence which we have seen cause damage to underwater cables”.
Express has approached the Home Office for comment.
