Russia lashes out at UK’s Gavin Williamson
Russia on 26 January said the British Defence Secretary had stepped beyond ‘the boundaries of reason’ after he accused Moscow of planning to create chaos in the UK that could ‘cause thousands and thousands of deaths’.
Britain’s Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson made the unusually alarmist comments in an interview with the Daily Telegraph, in which he also said Russia was spying on the UK's critical infrastructure.
Igor Konashenkov, Russian defence ministry spokesman, said: ‘The minister's fear of Russia photographing electric power plants or studying the routes of British gas pipelines is like something out of a children's comic or the show 'Monty Python's Flying Circus.’
The location of electric power plants and pipelines were as secret as ‘Westminster Abbey or Big Ben,’ the spokesman said.
Konashenkov added: ‘If these statements are an attempt by Wilson to attract attention to himself, he will be far from the first defence minister to try to score political points by playing up the Russian threat to the British.’
The strongly worded statement suggested Britain's military staff be ‘recertified’ by the medical board if they were giving Williamson such information.
The interview was more likely an attempt to boost the defence ministry's budget, Konashenkov added.
Williamson, who only became defence chief in November after his predecessor Michael Fallon resigned over allegations of misconduct, gave the interview at the outset of a new five-month defence review.
According to British reports, he is pressuring Finance Minister Philip Hammond to allocate more money to defence and scrap further cuts to Britain's strained armed forces.
More from Defence Notes
-
![How Canada plans to “seize” the opportunity to increase investments in defence]()
How Canada plans to “seize” the opportunity to increase investments in defence
The Canadian Department of National Defence has been increasing efforts to accelerate the acquisition of new equipment and modernise its in-service inventory.
-
![Palantir and Boeing partner up to bring AI to defence manufacturing]()
Palantir and Boeing partner up to bring AI to defence manufacturing
The partnership with the US airframer will see Palantir’s AI software leveraged to help streamline data analytics across Boeing’s 12 factories on defence and classified programmes.
-
![DroneShield to double its US footprint to meet growing demand for counter-UxS capabilities]()
DroneShield to double its US footprint to meet growing demand for counter-UxS capabilities
DroneShield disclosed to Shephard its plans to increase its workforce and manufacturing capacities while strengthening partnerships with US suppliers.
-
![Singapore’s DSTA seeks wider partnerships to advance robotics and AI capabilities]()
Singapore’s DSTA seeks wider partnerships to advance robotics and AI capabilities
The technology organisation is expecting a significant rise in the number of staff working across robotics and digital solutions as it becomes more of a focal point.
-
![Modular and attritable equipment must be a priority: US military]()
Modular and attritable equipment must be a priority: US military
Senior officers and representatives from the US Army, US Air Force and US Navy emphasised the need to expedite acquisition projects for systems and platforms that are more modular. They also highlighted that the loss of equipment is acceptable.
