Britain’s nuclear submarine base has seen a tenfold increase in the number of security incidents since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Breaches at Faslane, officially known as HMNB Clyde, have risen from 16 incidents being recorded in 2021 to 149 last year, reports LBC.
There was also a rise in incidents at the nearby Royal Navy Armaments Depot at Coulport, the storage location for Trident nuclear warheads, where there were 19 breaches recorded at the site last year, compared to just nine in 2021.
Security experts have warned the breaches represent an evolution in the warfare threat currently facing Britain.
Former Head of the British Army General Sir Patrick Sanders told LBC: “One thing you can be absolutely certain of is that when we look at the threat that Russia poses to Europe, that hybrid threat, that sub-threshold threat, whether that is around attacks on critical national infrastructure, on undersea cables, cyber attacks, assassinations, that full range, we’re going to experience that at a much greater scale and intensity than we have.
“We also need to tie those hybrid threats to the potential for above threshold attacks as well.”
Christopher Steele, who headed MI6’s Russia desk, added: “Russia regards itself as in a state of war now with not just Ukraine, but also Ukraine’s main allies in Europe, including the UK.
“In fact, our intelligence suggests that Moscow now regards the UK as its main foreign adversary rather than the US since Trump came back to office.”
Police stationed at the nuclear sub base HMNB Clyde, at Faslane in Scotland
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PAThe Ministry of Defence did not disclose what was behind each security incident.
However, it said the term “[refers] to, but are not limited to, incidents of minor breaches, mis-accounted documentation, lost ID cards and breaches of personal electronic device zones and general data protection regulation.”
Chair of the Defence Select Committee and MP for Slough Tan Dhesi highlighted the evolving threats faced at British bases, adding: “These figures are extremely concerning…This is something that the Defence Committee has also discussed when we were recently over at His Majesty’s Naval Base, Clyde, or more commonly known as Faslane.
“We discussed the security issues there, including the ability, for example, of drones to be going into or hovering over our military bases. There’s been an increased propensity for that to happen and not just above airports.”
PICTURED: Vanguard class nuclear submarine HMS Vengeance in Gare Loch, after departing HMNB Clyde in Faslane | PA
Former senior British Army intelligence officer Philip Ingram MBE said: “The thing that concerns me is the trend of breaches is going up.Now, that can be down to two things.
“One, people are being more diligent and reporting incidents, but it’s actually an indication that there is likely to be more incidents.
“We are seeing alongside this, reports of lack of investment in our nuclear deterrent capability and our armed forces; put all of that together and it’s a very worrying trend… And not just Russia, China as well, they’re trying to get access to our nuclear secrets.”
More to follow…