UK and France warn of escalating Russian hybrid warfare threat

Britain's most senior military officer has warned the country is living through its most dangerous security period in decades, as European leaders sound increasingly urgent alarms over Russia's expanding campaign of sabotage, cyberattacks, and hybrid warfare against the West.

A 'Call to Arms'

Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, Chief of the Defence Staff, told BBC Radio 4 that the risks facing Britain are "greater than I have known since the Cold War" in his 35-year career. He said the UK must prepare for "potentially much greater, longer conflicts" than the short, contained operations that shaped British military planning over the past two decades.express+2

Knighton described Russia as actively "probing, challenging, testing our defences," citing increased long-range Russian aviation sorties near UK airspace and a broader pattern of "cyber attacks or trying to smuggle technology and reckless sabotage and assassination attempts". He added that "Russia is definitely raising the stakes and risks crossing a line".express

First Sea Lord Gen. Sir Gwyn Jenkins reinforced the message in a speech at Admiralty House on September 17, calling Russia "the greatest threat to our security today," felt "most acutely in the maritime domain — in the North Atlantic, in the High North".news.usni+1

Europe-Wide Alarm

France's Interior Minister Laurent Nunez described the hybrid warfare threat as "real" and "documented" during an interview with BFMTV/RMC on Monday. His comments followed President Emmanuel Macron's announcement on September 19 of a plan to protect French critical infrastructure against drone attacks and cyberattacks, with Macron stating that "the nature of Russian aggression and the threats in Europe are changing".rfi+1

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned that intelligence indicated Russia was planning hybrid strikes with drones or rockets against European countries supporting Ukraine. The warnings follow a series of incidents, including an explosives-laden drone discovered at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany in August and a drone shot down over Lithuanian airspace on September 15.newsweek+2

Public Anxiety Grows

A YouGov poll published on September 21 found that 40 percent of Britons now view Russia as a major threat to the rest of Europe beyond Ukraine, with a further 36 percent describing it as a moderate threat. The polling reflects a broader shift in public sentiment as incidents of Russian hybrid activity multiply across the continent.yougov

Historian Margaret MacMillan told the BBC: "It's not the tanks you need to worry about. It's the cutting of cables on the ocean floor. It's the hacking into systems on which so many things depend". She added: "I don't think we are psychologically prepared… but I do think that we are beginning to recognise that war is something that is closer to us than we'd like to think".londonlovesbusiness

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said this week that Russia "continues to lash out with reckless and dangerous attacks".newsweek