The damage that could be caused to the UK through Russia’s hybrid warfare is “very real”, an expert has told Sky News.
Arsalan Bilal, who works at the centre for peace studies at UiT The Arctic University of Norway, says Russia has been “unleashing its hybrid warfare against the West for decades”.
“We’re talking about Russia combining military and non-military strategies in a sophisticated manner so it is not done randomly,” he says.
He points to the war in Ukraine as a “classic case of Russia’s hybrid warfare against the West”.
“It is a war that aims to undermine Western security,” he adds.
This month, Russia was accused by European governments of escalating hybrid attacks on Ukraine’s Western allies after two fibre-optic telecommunication cables in the Baltic Sea were severed.
Asked about this, Mr Bilal says: “I wouldn’t be surprised if it was Russia.
“That’s classic sabotage where you do something indirectly or directly but deny involvement. So, for example, the attack on Nord Stream and the attack on under sea cables in Europe.”
He says in terms of how much damage hybrid warfare can cause to the UK, in isolation “you would conclude not much”.
“But in totality the damage is very real. It’s long-lasting and goes much beyond what we see with the naked eye,” he warns.