Calls for heightened security follow warnings that regional infrastructure is increasingly vulnerable to foreign interference, particularly around subsea cables and the £30m SaxaVord Spaceport. While prior communication outages in 2022 and 2023 were not tied to foreign meddling, recent Baltic Sea sabotage has heightened sensitivity surrounding maritime assets. Scottish First Minister John Swinney and local MP Alistair Carmichael argue the current Royal Navy presence is inadequate to protect the exposed coastline. This push draws on Shetland's long history as an Arctic surveillance and defense outpost during past global conflicts.
Key points
Political figures argue the current naval posture leaves Scotland's northern maritime bor…: Political figures argue the current naval posture leaves Scotland's northern maritime borders and key infrastructure dangerously exposed.
Historical defense infrastructure in Shetland, including an Arctic surveillance radar rev…: Historical defense infrastructure in Shetland, including an Arctic surveillance radar revived in 2018, faces renewed strategic importance.
Past communications blackouts on the islands underscore the acute vulnerability of subsea…: Past communications blackouts on the islands underscore the acute vulnerability of subsea cables to potential regional disruption.
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Calls are being made for the defence of the Shetland Isles to be strengthened after increased sightings of Russian trawlers off the coast of Scotland.
Recent analysis by the Daily Telegraph, external also revealed that there have been more than 500 incidents where Russian boats have been stationed above undersea cables linking Britain with Europe and the US.
These cables carry the majority of telecoms data abroad.
The growing importance of undersea infrastructure prompted a parliamentary report, external last year to warn of security vulnerabilities in areas including transport and supply chains, financial services and payment systems.
There are also concerns that the £30m SaxaVord Spaceport in Shetland could be a Russian target.
But do the Shetland Isles really need better protection by the military?
Why are there concerns now?
In recent years there have been a number of incidents in the Baltic Sea where underwater cables have been damaged or completely cut.
In December last year, Finnish police detained a vessel sailing from Russia, which was suspected of damaging an undersea telecoms cable running from Helsinki to…
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