UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – UK Defence Secretary John Healey warns Russian spy ship posed laser threat to RAF pilots; government plans new munitions factories to boost defence.
As reported by The Independent, following reports that a Russian spy vessel aimed lasers at RAF pilots in UK waters, Defence Secretary John Healey has warned Russian President Vladimir Putin over the provocative actions.
What did John Healey say after a Russian spy ship targeted RAF pilots?
John Healey confirmed that the Russian ship Yantar was operating off northern Scotland and had targeted RAF pilots with lasers.
He told a Westminster press conference,
“My message to Russia and to Putin is this: We see you. We know what you’re doing. And if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready.”
Mr Healey said,
“A Russian spy ship, the Yantar, is on the edge of UK waters north of Scotland, having entered the UK’s wider waters over the last few weeks.”
He stated,
“This is a vessel designed for gathering intelligence and mapping our undersea cables.”
The defence secretary said,
“We deployed a Royal Navy frigate and RAF planes to monitor and track this vessel’s every move, during which the Yantar directed lasers at our pilots.”
He added,
“That Russian action is deeply dangerous, and this is the second time this year that this ship, the Yantar, has deployed to UK waters.”
Mr Healey continued,
“So my message to Russia and to Putin is this: we see you, we know what you’re doing, and if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready.”
The ship, which Mr. Healey warned is “built to endanger our undersea infrastructure,” has now entered UK waters for the second time.
The UK plans to build 13 factories for munitions and military explosives, and the defence secretary said construction on the first site will begin next year.
Mr Healey said,
“It is part of a Russian fleet. It isn’t just a naval operation. It’s part of a Russian programme driven by what they call the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research, or GUGI, and this is designed to have capabilities which can undertake surveillance in peacetime and sabotage in conflict.”
He added,
“It is a demonstration, if you like, of a British readiness to act, a British capability to act, because, make no mistake, we will not tolerate a threat to the British people’s essential connections under water.”
Referencing global tensions, the defence secretary said the UK “must step up” in a “new era of hard power,” citing the Israel-Iran war, this year’s India-Pakistan clashes, and Chinese spies targeting MPs.
Over the past year, he warned that Europe experienced widespread drone disruptions, Russian airspace breaches have increased, and the UK’s defence systems alone were hit by 90,000 cyber attacks.
The defence secretary said the Ministry of Defence has funded feasibility studies for factories producing explosives, pyrotechnics, and propellants, aiming to restart high-volume production in the UK for the first time in nearly two decades.
Sites under consideration for Britain’s “factories of the future” include Grangemouth in Scotland, Teesside in northeast England, and Milford Haven in Wales.
Mr Healey said,
“For too long our proud industrial heartlands saw jobs go away and not come back. We are changing that. Bringing new hope. This is a fundamental shift from the failed approach of the past.”
He added,
“This is a new era of threat but the opportunity of this new era is a defence dividend from our record investment, measured in good jobs, thriving businesses, new skills for the British people.”
Mr Healey continued that Chancellor Rachel Reeves will use next week’s Budget to prevent a return to the “hollowed-out and underfunded” armed forces.
How did the Commons Defence Committee warn about the UK’s war preparedness?
The Commons Defence Committee has warned over the nation’s war readiness, saying the UK does not currently have a strategy to defend itself or meet its NATO obligations.
The warning coincided with Mr Healey’s announcement to strengthen the UK’s production of munitions and military explosives, with at least 13 sites across the country identified for the construction of new factories.
The parliamentary committee’s report warned that Britain has no strategy to protect its homeland and overseas territories, calling for greater public transparency about the scale of the threat and the response required.
The committee’s head, Labour’s Tan Dhesi, said,
“Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, unrelenting disinformation campaigns, and repeated incursions into European airspace mean that we cannot afford to bury our heads in the sand.”
He stated,
“We have repeatedly heard concerns about the UK’s ability to defend itself from attack. Government must be willing to grasp the nettle and prioritise homeland defence and resilience.”
Mr Dhesi added,
“In achieving this, government cannot shy away from direct engagement with the public. Wars aren’t won just by generals but by the whole of the population getting behind the armed forces and playing our part. There needs to be a coordinated effort to communicate with the public on the level of threat we face and what to expect in the event of conflict.”
What did Luke Pollard say about UK threats and defence capabilities?
Armed forces minister Luke Pollard said the UK is “safe”, but he admitted the nation is “facing new threats.”
Following the report’s publication, he stated,
“We are safe, but we are facing new threats. Both of those can be true at the same time.”
Mr Pollard added,
“What we’ve got here is the men and women of our armed forces being able to defend against threats, but we need to increase the amount of abilities they have, the capabilities to bring on the new technologies that help them do so, because we know that our adversaries are investing in new technologies.”
He continued,
“We can see the way that war is now being fought differently in Ukraine than perhaps we had prepared for in the past.”
How is the UK responding to the EU’s defence fund demands?
Ahead of the Defence Secretary’s speech, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer visited Berlin to discuss defence and security matters over dinner with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron.
The dinner was held amid ongoing negotiations over Britain’s role in a €150bn (£132bn) European defence fund, with reports saying London is considering pulling out over France’s demand for a £5bn payment.
The government plans to reduce international aid from 0.5% to 0.3% of Gross National Income (GNI) by 2027 to fund an increase in defense spending from 2.3% to 2.5% of GDP.
Britain’s cuts global aid funding to increase its defense budget to prioritize national security amid escalating geopolitical threats.