Ministers unveil new crackdown on Russian saboteurs trying to damage Britain’s vital undersea cables

Saboteurs who deliberately damaged undersea internet cables around Britain are expected to be jailed under new laws designed to thwart Russian interference.

The penalty for interfering with communications cables currently includes a fine of just £1,000, which is punishable by imprisonment, unless prosecutors can prove the action was on behalf of a foreign power.

But digital economy minister Liz Lloyd said in a speech in central London that ministers would “make the law clearer, tougher and harder to avoid, sending a clear message that there will be serious consequences if you act carelessly or deliberately target our cables”.

The move is designed as a deterrent to protect undersea fiber optic cables, which are responsible for 99 percent of the world’s digital communications and play a key role in commercial, government and military operations by transmitting information securely.

Any damage to Britain’s undersea cables could cause serious political and economic disruption.

Baroness Lloyd said Britain’s message to Putin was simple: “We can see what you are doing and any interference will have serious consequences.”

Last month, the defense minister issued a stern warning to Vladimir Putin following Russia’s attack and the discovery of spy submarines operating in the North Atlantic.

John Healey told a press conference that in the past few weeks many people had focused on the Middle East crisis, but the UK was having to respond to “increasing Russian activity” near key UK cables and pipelines in the Atlantic north of Britain.

He also revealed that Britain and its allies monitored the ships, including a Russian Akula-class nuclear-powered attack submarine and two specialist submarines from the Russian Ministry of Defense’s deep-sea research program known as GUGI, for a month before withdrawing.

New, tougher penalties will affect ship owners and operators who recklessly damage underwater infrastructure.

Acts of sabotage linked to a hostile state already attract life imprisonment for the most serious cases, but malicious submarine activity sometimes operates in a “gray zone” that is difficult to prosecute.

The government currently monitors activities at sea using the military, intelligence services and law enforcement.

Ministers are understood to believe there are a number of ways they can investigate and prosecute any intentional damage, including the entry of ships into port and international co-operation.

Speaking at leading defense think tank the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), Baroness Lloyd said: “There are already strong safeguards in place for our undersea cables in the UK, but we cannot stand still in a more uncertain world.”

“As hostile activity by Russia and others increases, protecting these cables is more important than ever to our economy, security and daily lives. That’s why we plan to go further by implementing tougher penalties for careless damage, stronger security obligations and new powers to respond quickly when incidents occur.”

The announcement came as the international community condemned Russia after one of its drones entered Romania and crashed into an apartment block.

Keir Starmer condemned the crash as a “serious breach of NATO airspace”.

This is a developing news story, more below…