Russia 'using fishing trawlers to map undersea cables in UK waters' | LBC

Analysis cited by LBC says 17 Russian ships spent long periods at low speed near UK undersea cables, a pattern tied to warnings from the House of Commons Defence Committee that “dramatic progress” is needed to bolster UK forces. The report links the vessels’ activity to concerns over NATO tracking of threats to critical energy infrastructure, and also to doubts about Washington’s commitment to European security. Committee chair Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi says failing to defend the High North could expose data cables and pipelines. LBC adds that The Telegraph identified more than 500 cable-related incidents involving Russian trawlers and cites four and a half years of Global Fishing Watch data pointing to the 17 ships near mapped cable positions in the North Atlantic.