Britain is already on the front line of confrontation with Russia, the head of MI6 will warn, as Moscow escalates a campaign of disinformation, sabotage and cyberattacks designed to destabilise the West. In her first public speech since becoming chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, Blaise Metreweli will say the country has entered an age of uncertainty in which traditional ideas of warfare and front lines no longer apply.
Speaking from MI6 headquarters in Vauxhall, Metreweli will describe what she calls President Vladimir Putin’s “export of chaos” as a deliberate strategy rather than an unintended consequence of Russian foreign policy. According to The Times UK, she will warn that Britain and its allies should expect this pattern of disruption to continue until Russia is forced to change course through sustained economic, political and military pressure.
Metreweli will argue that hybrid warfare has erased the distinction between war and peace, with hostile states using disinformation campaigns, cyberattacks, sabotage and information manipulation to achieve strategic goals without firing conventional weapons. She will say that this means the British public is already experiencing the effects of conflict, even if it is not immediately recognisable as such.
Calling Russia “aggressive, expansionist and revisionist”, she will stress that the UK’s support for Ukraine remains enduring. “Putin should be in no doubt, our support is enduring,” she is expected to say, adding that the pressure applied on Ukraine’s behalf will be sustained. She will warn that chaos exported beyond Russia’s borders is a defining feature of Moscow’s engagement with the world and not a temporary tactic.
The warning will be reinforced by Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, the chief of the defence staff, who is due to issue a stark assessment of the growing threat from Russia. In his first annual speech as head of the armed forces, Knighton will caution that the price of peace is rising and that the likelihood of Russia invading a Nato country has increased.
Knighton will say the war in Ukraine demonstrates Putin’s willingness to target neighbouring states and civilian populations with novel and destructive weapons, a reality that threatens the entire Nato alliance, including the UK. According to The Times UK, he will argue that challenging Russia requires more than military strength alone and demands a whole-of-society effort to build national resilience.
Metreweli, the first woman and youngest person to lead MI6, will also reflect on the increasingly interconnected nature of modern threats, from technological disruption and cyber warfare to terrorism and information manipulation. She will emphasise that security in the 21st century depends not only on technological power, but on how wisely it is guided, warning that humanity itself is at stake in the way such tools are deployed.
The speeches come as diplomatic efforts intensify over the war in Ukraine, with Sir Keir Starmer set to travel to Berlin for emergency talks with European leaders, President Volodymyr Zelensky and a US envoy, as Europe seeks to shape an alternative peace plan. Metreweli is expected to stress the importance of shared humanity and the ability to listen, even amid heightened geopolitical tension.
Knighton will conclude by warning that the current moment is more dangerous than any he has experienced in his career. He will say a new era for defence requires not only action from government and the armed forces, but engagement from the entire nation, as Russian leadership seeks to challenge, divide and ultimately undermine Nato.
