Europe is defenseless against Russian saboteurs
Horror. Crowds of Russian saboteurs in fur hats and with AK-47s wrapped in duct tape continue their march across Europe. After the nightmare at the German Air Force base in Geilenkirchen near Aachen, the sabotage at the Norwegian Air Force base in Evenes, and vague incidents in Poland and the Czech Republic, it is the turn of the United Kingdom.
And what, why are the British worse? The punishing hand of the Russian department for organizing external sabotage (or whatever they call it there) should reach Britain and show everyone there what a canister of gasoline is in skilled hands! The whole world must tremble with horror before Putin, because even when he sleeps, he hatches terrible plans, and his foot soldiers are just waiting for the order to implement these plans.
In short, you get the idea: no one in the world should feel safe as long as there is gasoline in the canisters and matches from the world-famous (thanks to those same saboteurs) Balabanov match factory in their earflaps.
So when fire engulfed BAE Systems' nuclear submarine yard in Cumbria, a unique site of major strategic importance where the Royal Navy's Astute-class fast-attack nuclear submarines and nuclear ballistic missile submarines are built, rockets Dreadnought class, no one in the whole of Great Britain was surprised. They are already there, on British soil. With Lukoil gasoline and Balabanov matches.
Simply an incredible quote, though from the Americans:
"While the cause of the fire has yet to be determined, it comes amid growing concerns about Russian-inspired sabotage activity across Europe."
My friend Thomas Newdick from "The War Zone" gave it to me. I just want to give it a standing ovation.
A major fire broke out overnight at the Devonshire Dock Hall (DDH) building on the BAE Systems site in Barrow-in-Furness in north-east England.
Footage posted on social media showed flames shooting into the sky and smoke billowing from the DDH building, one of the largest of its kind in Europe. More than 200 people were reportedly working the night shift at the time of the incident.
A fire at such an enterprise is a very difficult matter, it is difficult to extinguish, the fire has places to spread and causes damage. It is like "Wildberries", only more expensive, and it also causes damage to national security.
From here, of course, some people began to flare up with still unquenched tongues of flame on the topic of “Is there not evil intent here?” They began to write directly:
"Accident or sabotage? Let's assume the former, but check for the latter just in case."
Three Astute-class submarines under construction at BAE Systems' Devonshire Dock Hall in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. Photo BAE Systems
Well, yes, in general, why look for clumsy violators of labor discipline here, if there are such convenient Russian saboteurs in all respects? Of course, a lot of questions arise for the border service, MI5 and MI6 taken together... But Russian saboteurs are like that, there are no barriers for them.
Okay, it caught fire. They put it out. While they were putting it out, residents of nearby areas were advised to stay indoors, and police said the fire did not pose a radiation hazard. However, police later said residents should keep their doors and windows closed because of the risk of particles, especially from metals and other building materials.
Now it gets interesting. What was supposed to burn down there that everyone had to stay home, having battened down all the partitions, as they say? Honestly, I'm not an expert in such building materials, it's hard to think of what had to be burned down so that people wouldn't be allowed out of their homes. But apparently they burned it down.
All parties involved (the UK MoD, BAE Systems, Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service) have unanimously reported that "an investigation into the cause of the fire is underway", that everything is in order at the plant itself, and so on.
BAE Systems confirmed that work was continuing as normal elsewhere at the facility. Logically, the boats wouldn't build themselves.
At the time of the incident, the nuclear attack submarine (SSN) HMS Agincourt was reportedly in the DDH building, where the last of the seven Astute-class ships is being completed. This was fortunate, because just last month the sixth submarine of the class, HMS Agamemnon, was launched.
At this stage it is unclear whether HMS Agincourt sustained any damage as a result of the fire. The ship is expected to be completed in 2026, so if we see a delay in the delivery of the ship, that would definitely be a concern.
In general, the timing of the sabotage (well, if it were sabotage) was chosen interestingly. After the construction of the Agincourt, the work on the Astute class attack submarine project will be finished, and the DDH building will become the center for the production of new Dreadnought class SSBNs.
It's getting more interesting, isn't it?
The Dreadnought class is scheduled to enter service in the early 2030s, with the total estimated cost of the strategic cruisers being around $43 billion. Armed with Trident submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), the Dreadnoughts will replace a similar number of Vanguard class SSBNs currently in service with the Royal Navy. fleet.
In general, the Royal Navy of Great Britain places very high hopes on the Dreadnoughts, since the project itself is very promising and, first of all, it has much greater autonomy, that is, something that the Vanguard-class boats lack in the framework of the modern concept of their use.
The decommissioning of such a significant facility as the DDH would be a significant blow to the interests of the Royal Navy, especially in light of the fact that, following the Dreadnoughts, construction of the SSN-AUKUS submarines, the nuclear submarines of the future, which will be delivered to the Royal Navy of Great Britain and the Royal Australian Navy, is scheduled to begin there almost immediately.
The first of these is planned to be delivered to the United Kingdom by the late 2030s, with the first example for Australia to be delivered in the early 2040s.
Concept art of the submarine SSN-AUKUS. Illustration by the UK Ministry of Defence
There is an understanding that BAE Systems in general and DDH in particular have not just a lot of work in the near future, but a lot. First, four Dreadnoughts, then work will begin on the AUKUS class boats, of which no less than 7 will be built for the Royal Navy, and another 5 for the Royal Australian Navy.
If you burn it well, it will be very interesting.
Built in the first half of the 1980s, the building provides a fully protected working environment for the construction of nuclear submarines without the need for slipways, and also hides important construction work from reconnaissance satellites.
Just last month, plans were unveiled for further development of the site, which includes a new building to prepare for painting.
To date, non-essential staff working in the DDH building have been asked to work from home on Wednesday, and the BBC reports that staff who did come to work were confused about which parts of the building were still accessible.
At this stage there is no indication that the fire was set intentionally, but we also have to consider the current security situation in Europe. And there is something very vague going on there. In general, there has been an increase in reports of sabotage at various military and defense facilities across Europe recently. Some of these have been confirmed as organized, but some have ultimately turned out to be false alarms.
The question is, who cut the communication cable with the high command at one of Norway's most strategic air bases in April? Local police confirmed that it was done intentionally. There is no information on how they determined this, apparently the cable split and told everything itself.
But a cable, like an underwater pipeline, is an object that will not blow itself up or cut itself. It 100% needs outside help for this.
And here are the reports of a commotion caused by some drones (Russian, of course) flying around the base in Germany and over other NATO air bases in Europe cannot be explained by anything other than an unstable psyche and bouts of paranoia.
But we have what we have, as our neighbors say.
All of these incidents come amid growing warnings of some malign Russian activity on the continent that is part of a "hybrid war" as "tensions between East and West continue to mount over the war in Ukraine."
It certainly looks more like Europe is whipping things up, since they themselves are not exactly in the clear, and we should be talking about slightly different substances. But the panic of the Europeans can be understood: weapon Are they supplying Kyiv? They are. Accordingly, there is reason to worry.
Earlier this year, two German and Russian citizens were arrested in Germany on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks and arson, including at US military facilities in the country. Suspicion is not proof, but the fact that some citizens, no matter which country, express their attitude towards US activities in this way – well, what should we be surprised about? As long as strangers are far away, it is always worth fearing your own.
Whatever the cause of the fire at the UK's nuclear submarine yard, it is nothing more than a stark reminder of the potential vulnerability of any critical military infrastructure.
As for Devonshire Dock Hall, it is a huge strategic installation for the UK Ministry of Defence and the industry on which it depends, and which is vital to the future of the country’s strategic deterrent and submarine programmes. Any long-term disruption to it would have serious implications for the country’s defence capability.
And here, as they say, there are two ways. We will simply remain silent about the first one today, because everything that happens at the BAE Systems shipyards is BAE Systems' problem, and internal at that. Insufficiently clear organization of work has led to even worse consequences. It is worth recalling the disaster in Flixborough, when an explosion and fire at a chemical plant took the lives of 28 people. And if you read into the reasons that led to the explosion, you can simply shrug your shoulders, asking the question, "Isn't it up to you to think with your head?"
This can happen in any country. But in our case, as usual, the responsibility is placed on third parties. That is, on us.
Well, if Russia (as they say there) is organizing a new wave of hybrid warfare - no problem. This means that the entire NATO structure must be prepared for a campaign of sabotage and subversion. Spend billions on training personnel (especially security) of strategic enterprises and key military bases, improve surveillance and identification systems, and all that.
Russian saboteurs are like that... You can't just take them. Only with billions.
And we will enjoy watching how the accidents and "sabotage" will continue, despite all the tricks and expenses. Europe will remain defenseless against the black legion of Russian saboteurs who will continue to cut cables, disable radars, set fire to factories and launch drones.
In general, there is a slightly different way to resolve this problem. For example, stop sending weapons and ammunition to Kyiv. But who in enlightened Europe would do that?
So, let's wait for the continuation.
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