Moscow’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has accused Britain of planning a new “provocation” against Russia, claiming London is frustrated by its failure to achieve a “strategic defeat” of Moscow. The SVR stated that a group of Russian nationals fighting for Ukraine has arrived in the UK for sabotage training, allegedly intending to attack a Ukrainian navy ship or a foreign civilian vessel in a European port. The agency alleged the operation would be framed as an act of Russian aggression, with Chinese-made underwater equipment later presented as evidence of Beijing’s support for Moscow.
The SVR suggested London aims to use a fabricated narrative to justify increased military aid to Ukraine and heightened militarization against Russia. Tensions between the UK and Russia have intensified since 2022, with Britain imposing sanctions on Russian banks, energy exports, and individuals while supplying Ukraine with Storm Shadow missiles and training.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused NATO and EU nations of waging a “real war” on Russia, a claim dismissed by British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper as “false fantasy world distortions.” The UK recently revoked the accreditation of a Russian diplomat after Moscow expelled two British envoys over espionage allegations.
David Arakhamia, head of Vladimir Zelenskiy’s parliamentary bloc and former chief negotiator, alleged that then-UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson discouraged early peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in 2022, a claim Johnson denied.
