Teach children how to catch Russian spies online, MPs told
Instead of relying heavily on the military for the defence of the realm. it has been argued that a 'whole of society' approach, from schools to the wider community, is engaged with to combat grey zone threats, which include cyber hackers who use sabotage, espionage and disinformation to wreak havoc online.
The report, Defence in the Grey Zone, published on Wednesday, cited a disinformation curriculum taught at primary schools in Finland as an example of how to engage children about online risks such as Russian disinformation networks.
The MPs behind the report said it was launched in 2023 because of the increased grey zone threat from Russia.
The report quoted Sir Alex Younger, the former chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, who said Russia fundamentally 'sees itself at war with the West'.
It also warns of the grey zone attacks that critical national infrastructure can be vulnerable to, such as the targeting of data cables and energy pipelines.
Earlier this year, Nato military chiefs warned of the rising threat of global internet blackouts, after Russia was suspected of attacking undersea fibre-optic cables.
It is understood that every couple of weeks the Royal Navy observes activity from Russian vessels moving through British waters.
To counter this, the Ministry of Defence also suggests that the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), which was launched in 2014 to encourage greater levels of military integration between allies, has a great role in combating grey zone threats.
The report concludes that if JEF is to protect critical seabed infrastructure and support extended military operations in the High North, it must possess credible, deployable capabilities.
The committee calls on the MoD to consider reinforcing the bows of Royal Navy ships, including the future Type 83 Destroyers, to ensure they can operate for longer periods in the Arctic, as well as having a permanent presence in the Baltic to provide a more responsive deterrent against sabotage to undersea cables, and to protect shipping lanes used by UK troops to reinforce Nato's eastern flank.
To lead this work across government, the report has called for the appointment of a dedicated minister for homeland security.
In June, a Russian warship, the corvette Boikiy, passed through the English Channel in disguise, said to have broadcast a fake ID signal.
In May, a Russian shadow Kilo-class submarine, Krasnodar, was detected in the Channel, forcing the Navy to deploy HMS Tyne to track it.
Tan Dhesi, chairman of the committee, said: 'Our adversaries have purposefully blurred the line between peace and war. Grey zone threats pose a particularly insidious challenge – they unsettle the fabric of our day-to-day lives and undermine our ability to respond.
'Grey zone threats bring war to the doorstep of each and every one of us. These attacks do not discriminate; they target the whole of our society and so demand a whole of society response, in which we all must play our part.'
Mr Dhesi called on the Government and industry to work with wider society to improve the UK's resilience.
'This means working with businesses, schools and community groups, to increase awareness of grey zone threats and to help us all take the steps needed to protect ourselves, for example, from cyber attacks, or from disinformation,' he said.
'The MoD plays an important part in defending the nation from grey zone attacks, but it is only a part.
'We must now assume that any vulnerability will be exploited against us. The industries and technologies we rely on most are clear targets for hostile states.
'This is why, in today's report, we are calling for a shoring up of our digital and cyber skills and protections.'
He added that repeated damage to undersea cables emphasised the importance of protecting critical national infrastructure and called for the UK-led JEF to have additional capabilities that protect against Russian sabotage.
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