Europe is being targeted by Russia in a ‘staggeringly reckless’ sabotage campaign (Image: Getty)
Europe is the target of a “staggeringly reckless” campaign of Russian sabotage, the head of Britain’s foreign intelligence service has said.
MI6 chief Richard Moore said ‘s is targeting ‘s allies in the West and his spies are battling to stop the consequences from spiralling out of control.
In a message aimed in part at US President-Elect , Mr Moore said a Russian victory in threatens security in the US as well as Europe.
Mr Moore said MI6 and its French counterpart are working together to address the risks in response to Russian President ’s “mix of bluster and aggression”.
He said in a speech to diplomats and intelligence officials in France: “We have recently uncovered a staggeringly reckless campaign of Russian sabotage in Europe, even as Putin and his acolytes resort to nuclear saber-rattling, to sow fear about the consequences of aiding .”
The MI6 chief added: “Such activity and rhetoric is dangerous and beyond irresponsible.”
Officials in Lithuania are investigating possible Russian links to a DHL cargo plane crash (Image: Getty)
Mr Moore spoke alongside Nicolas Lerner, head of France’s external intelligence agency, the DGSE, at an event marking 120 years of the Entente Cordiale, a pact between Britain and France which binds the two countries together as military and diplomatic allies.
The anniversary comes as Western security officials suspect Russian intelligence is trying to destabilise ’s allies through disinformation, sabotage and arson.
Moscow has been linked by Western officials to several attacks in Europe, including an alleged plot to burn down Ukrainian-owned businesses in London.
The Kremlin has also been linked to incendiary devices found in packages on cargo planes. One caught fire at a courier hub in Germany in July and .
On Monday, a DHL cargo plane crashed on approach to an airport in Lithuania’s capital, killing a Spanish crew member. Lithuanian investigators have said in the crash.
Mr Lerner agreed that the collective security of the whole of Europe is at stake in , adding Britain’s experience tackling in the wake of attacks such as the 2018 Salisbury Novichok poisoning of an ex-Russian spy, was invaluable to French intelligence.
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Russia has been targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure (Image: Getty)
The UK and France are among the Ukrainian allies most willing to allow Kyiv to use the weapons they supply, such as Britain’s Storm Shadow missiles, to hit targets inside .
US President administration recently eased its long-held opposition to US-made missiles being used to strike .
Kyiv said last week it had used American ATACM missiles to target for the first time in the war.
Since then, and Moscow has pounded ’s energy infrastructure with hundreds of missiles and drones. The Russian leader said that came in response to the firing of the American missiles on Russian soil.
also fired a new intermediate-range ballistic missile, called Oreshnik, and Putin threatened to use it against “decision-making centres” in Kyiv.
In a warning to allies wavering in support for , Mr Moore warned “the cost of supporting is well-known, but the cost of not doing so would be infinitely higher”.
has criticised the billions the Biden administration has spent supporting and has said he could end the war in 24 hours. His comments appear to suggest he would press to surrender territory now occupies.
Mr Moore said: “If Putin is allowed to succeed in reducing to a vassal state, he will not stop there. Our security — British, French, European and trans-Atlantic — will be jeopardised.”
He said if wins, Iran and China, which so far support Moscow as “a transaction”, would draw even closer to , adding: “If Putin succeeds, China would weigh the implications, North Korea would be emboldened and Iran would become yet more dangerous.”
Some European officials worry about what Trump’s “America first” agenda means for trans-Atlantic relations, but Mr Moore said he was confident the bond was strong.
He said: “For decades the US-UK intelligence alliance has made our societies safer. I worked successfully with the first Trump administration to advance our shared security and look forward to doing so again.”