BRITAIN will acquire two specialist ships to protect underwater infrastructure following leaks in the Nord Stream gas pipelines from Russia to Europe, reports Reuters.
EU nations declared the Nord Stream pipelines were damaged because of sabotage but have stopped short of blaming Russia.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has blamed Western countries.
Speaking at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, Britich Defence Minister Ben Wallace spoke about ‘mysterious damage’ inflicted on the pipelines, but made clear that the threat to Britain’s infrastructure would come from Russia.
‘It should remind us all how fragile our economy and infrastructure is to such hybrid attacks. Our internet and our energy are highly reliant on pipelines and cables. Russia makes no secret of its ability to target such infrastructure,’ said Mr Wallace.
‘So for that reason, I can announce we have recently committed to two specialist ships with the capability to keep our cables and pipelines safe.’
Mr Wallace declared the first ‘multi-role survey ship for seabed warfare’ would be bought this year and operational by the end of next year, while the second ship would be built in the UK.
