Le Humiliation: Once-mighty Navy faces begging French fleet for help to patrol our OWN waters as PM is mocked for Chagos deal U-turn: ‘We’re relying on our oldest enemy’

Senior defense sources have revealed that the Royal Navy will have to seek help from the French to stop Russian ships in British waters as the British fleet struggles to meet ‘operational commitments’.

With Vladimir Putin making increasingly brazen displays of Russian military might around the UK, naval planners told The Mail on Sunday they ‘need help’ from Paris to deal with the threat.

Last week, it was revealed that the Kremlin had sent three submarines to waters north of England as part of a plan to sabotage British submarine cables, while Britain’s only existing destroyer, HMS Dragon, was in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Russian President also defied Sir Keir Starmer’s threat to seize sanctioned Russian ships by sending the battleship Admiral Grigorovich to escort a pair of his own ‘ghost fleet’ ships across the Channel.

The Navy appears to have only one submarine and two frigates for emergency operations.

Earlier this year, the German navy was forced to replace HMS Dragon as the flagship of the NATO task force after the destroyer was sent to the Mediterranean.

On Saturday night the Ministry of Defense denied that Britain needed French help, saying: ‘UK waters are protected and monitored 24/7; ‘We also have the resources to keep the UK safe.’

But this newspaper understands that naval staff officers at HMS Excellent Naval Command Headquarters in Portsmouth have been working on contingency plans to counter Russian shadow fleet tankers since the Prime Minister announced last month that the UK would interdict (board and seize) them.

Russia has turned its nose up at Sir Keir Starmer’s threat to seize sanctioned ships with naval escort. Picture: Prime Minister receives a phone call during Saturday’s match against Arsenal

French President Emmanuel Macron. Britain faces French help to protect British waters

They concluded that the Royal Marines needed the French to assist with possible boarding operations and ‘surveillance’ of surface fleet ships.

There are approximately 120 ships in the French Navy; This number is 45 more than the British. France also has more frigates and destroyers (25), all of which can carry helicopters and are more modern than the British.

A senior military source said: ‘We should have asked our oldest enemy for help in the Channel.

‘We do not have sufficient warship capabilities to secure the coastline without French support.

‘If politicians say we can do this on our own they are wrong. We need help. Frankly, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see that the fleet is struggling to meet operational commitments.’

They added: ‘We are working on a plan to use French assets to increase intelligence and improve security in our waters. This would be based on the framework we saw with the Joint Expeditionary Force, where nations such as Sweden, Denmark and Norway shared resources and intelligence to provide the legal, political and military power to harass these ships.

‘We are short of frigates, destroyers and submarines; unfortunately this is a fact. However, we plan and prepare; It is up to Downing Street to approve and direct us to carry out political policy.’

The news comes after Sir Keir suffered the embarrassment of having to scrap a deal that would have transferred sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius after Donald Trump withdrew his support for the plan.

The British territory includes a joint UK-US military base on the largest island, Diego Garcia, which has been a source of contention between London and Washington over its potential use to launch bombing raids against Iran.

On Saturday night, Reform leader Nigel Farage said asking the French for military help was ‘an act of national humiliation’, while former Tory defense secretary Tobias Ellwood said Britain needed ‘a completely new approach to naval defence, not a ’90s tribute band’.

Kemi Badenoch also accused the government of prioritizing ‘benefits over bullets’ and said it was a ‘national scandal’ that plans for future defense funding had still not been published.

In his speech, the Conservative Party leader claimed the government was ‘woefully unprepared’ to defend Britain and that the war in the Gulf ‘must be a wake-up call’.

He added: ‘We have become fat on welfare by prioritizing benefits over lead. ‘Britain overspent its post-Cold War peace dividend and politicians of all hues, as well as voters, prioritized day-to-day concerns over defence.’

Amid growing alarm, Defense Secretary John Healey admitted last week that he had asked for more money from the Treasury.

‘Do I want more resources? “Yes, I would,” he said. ‘Every Minister of Defense does this. Them [resources] It will increase.’

But he could not give a deadline for when ministers would publish the long-delayed Defense Investment Plan, a blueprint for military spending over the next decade.

The Ministry of Defense denied that it needed French help to protect British waters. Image: A submarine flying the flag of the Russian navy

Russian President Vladimir Putin was behind increasingly brazen displays of Russian military might around the UK

It was due to be announced following the publication of the Strategic Defense Review last year.

The Mail revealed shortfalls in defense procurement as part of the Leave Britain Defenseless campaign.

A French navy source told the MoS it “currently has one of the most formidable forward naval assets in Europe”.

They added: ‘If the British need more help against the Russians, France certainly has the capacity to help.’

A senior source at the Armed Forces Ministry in Paris said France and Britain were already sharing intelligence to help spy on Russian ships.

But international law and fear of provoking Russia have so far prevented them from adopting more aggressive tactics.

Sir Keir stated at last month’s Helsinki Summit that Moscow was increasing pressure on its shadow fleet of ‘unregistered’ oil tankers and announced that Britain would board sanctioned ships passing through UK waters.

Moscow’s shadow fleet reportedly consists of more than 1,000 aging tankers. They have been illegally shipping oil and other goods from Russia while flying the flags of other countries in an attempt to evade sanctions imposed by the West since the invasion of Ukraine.

A Ministry of Defense spokesman said: ‘These allegations are false. UK waters are protected and monitored 24/7; We have the resources to keep the UK safe. Just this week, thanks to the work of the UK Armed Forces, we revealed details of a failed Russian secret submarine operation.

‘We continue to develop our plans to protect our cables and pipelines. ‘We are providing an extra £100 million for the vital P8 anti-submarine fighter and launched the Atlantic Bastion program to combine the latest autonomous technologies with the best warships and aircraft to create a British-built hybrid naval force.’