UK and Norway led a military operation to deter Russian submarines in
the North Atlantic
[April 10, 2026]
By JILL LAWLESS
LONDON (AP) — Britain and Norway conducted a weekslong military
operation to deter Russian spy submarines near undersea cables in the
North Atlantic, the U.K. defense chief said Thursday, accusing Moscow of
using the distraction of the Iran war to ramp up malign activity against
Europe.
Defense Secretary John Healey said a Royal Navy frigate, aircraft and
hundreds of personnel were involved in tracking a Russian attack sub and
two spy submarines operating north of the U.K., and prevented the spy
vessels from carrying out “nefarious” activities against underwater
infrastructure.
He said the Russian vessels eventually left after the operation that
lasted more than a month. There is no evidence of damage to any cables
or pipes, he said.
The U.K. said other allies were also involved in the operation, but
didn't name them.
NATO countries have repeatedly expressed concern that Russia could use
its fleet of spy ships to sabotage underwater cables on which global
communications depend. Russia has dismissed those claims.
Healey said his message to Russian President Vladimir Putin was was “we
see your activity over our cables and our pipelines and you should know
that any attempt to damage them will not be tolerated and will have
serious consequences.”
Norwegian Defense Minister Tore Sandvik said in a statement that
Russia’s operation occurred in and near Norwegian and British maritime
areas in recent weeks.
Norway and the U.K. said the activity was coordinated by Russia’s Main
Directorate of Deep Sea Research, known as GUGI, which is part of
Russian armed forces. The activity is a reminder that Russia is further
developing its abilities to map and sabotage critical Western
infrastructure at ocean depths, Norway's Defense Ministry said.
Healey said the subs are “designed to survey underwater infrastructure
during peacetime and sabotage it in conflict.”
In November, Britain told Russia it was ready to deal with any incursion
into its territory after the spy ship Yantar was detected on the edge of
U.K. waters north of Scotland.
Healey said the submarine activity occurred in the U.K.’s exclusive
economic zone, which extends for 200 nautical miles (230 miles, 370
kilometers) from shore, but not its narrower territorial waters.
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Britain's Defence Secretary John Healey delivers a statement on
recent UK operational activity at 9 Downing Street in Westminster,
central London, Thursday April 9, 2026. (Yui Mok/Pool Photo via AP)
British officials have tried to keep Russia in the international
spotlight even as the world’s attention is focused on conflict in
the Middle East. They have also stressed the overlap between
conflicts there and in Ukraine, saying Russia has supplied Iran with
drone parts and other support.
The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has shed light on the reduced state of
Britain’s military, which has been shrinking for decades. U.S.
President Donald Trump has derided the Royal Navy, which has sent
one destroyer to the eastern Mediterranean to help defend Cyprus.
Healey told a news conference that “Putin would want us to be
distracted by the Middle East,” but Russia is the main threat to the
U.K. and its allies.
“We will not take our eyes off Putin,” he said.
In late March, the U.K. said its military was ready to seize ships
suspected to be part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” of vessels shipping
oil in violation of international sanctions over Moscow’s war on
Ukraine. Previously, Britain had only helped France and the U.S.
monitor ships before they were boarded.
Katja Bego, a senior research fellow at international affairs think
tank Chatham House, said “calling out" Russian operations as Healey
had done could be an effective deterrent.
“But there are urgent conversations to be had as well about what
European countries can do to inflict a far higher cost on Russia in
response to these increasingly brazen incursions," she said.
___
Associated Press writer Stefanie Dazio in Berlin contributed to this
report.
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