Underwater defence plan is revealed

HYBRID NAVAL FORCE TO PROTECT SEAS

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DEFENCE Secretary John Healey has said the UK and its allies are ready to “track and deter” Russian submarines as he revealed plans for a new multi-million pound force to protect undersea cables and pipelines.

The hybrid naval force, named Atlantic Bastion, will combine autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence (AI) with warships and aircraft to identify threats to underwater structure and to defend them from malicious interference.

Subsea infrastructure is the lifeblood of the UK's connectivity, carrying 99% of international telecommunications data and vital energy supplies such as electricity, oil and gas.

The move comes after cables in the Baltic Sea have been reported to have been damaged recently, and UK defence intelligence has identified that Russia is modernising its fleet to target undersea cables and pipelines.