House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard Written Answers
During a parliamentary exchange on 18 November 2024, the UK Defence Journal was directly referenced in a question from Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael, who raised concerns about the activities of the Russian research and intelligence vessel Yantar in the Irish Sea.
Carmichael highlighted the vessel’s presence near undersea cables, drawing attention to similar incidents in the North Sea and off Shetland last year.
Carmichael asked:
“On Friday, the UK Defence Journal reported on the activities of the Russian research and intelligence vessel Yantar in the Irish Sea, in the vicinity of various cables. This is not new; we had the same thing last year in the North Sea and off Shetland. Given the sheer quantity of cables and pipelines now in the seabed, what are the Government doing to ensure that that critical national infrastructure is properly protected?”
In response, Luke Pollard, Armed Forces Minister, reassured the House of the UK’s commitment to protecting critical national infrastructure, including undersea cables.
Pollard stated: “Let the House be in no doubt that the United Kingdom and our armed forces will defend our critical national infrastructure undersea cables. We have a strategy and armed forces protecting our cables, and we are working with our allies to do so.”
Pollard further indicated that the issue would likely be addressed in the upcoming strategic defence review, set for publication next year: “I suspect that that will also feature as a recommendation in the strategic defence review when it is published next year.”
The mention of the UK Defence Journal in Parliament underscores the publication’s role in bringing defence and security issues into the public eye, something we are very proud of.
The government’s response reflects a growing focus on undersea security, recognising the strategic importance of submarine cables and pipelines for national and international communications, energy, and trade.
(Source: https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/)