UK Exploits Alleged Russian Threat to Boost Defense Budget - Russian Embassy

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The UK authorities are trying to intimidate their citizens by using an alleged Russian threat in an effort to increase the country's defense budget, the Russian Embassy to the United Kingdom said on Saturday.

The embassy's remark followed the statement of UK Chief of the Defense Staff Sir Stuart Peach, who said on Friday that a potential Russian attack on UK undersea Internet cables might lead to "catastrophic" consequences for the country's economy.

"Such sensationalist statements can only cause regret, as they are fanning the flames of the unwholesome sentiment created by PM Theresa May’s 'banquet speech'… London keeps speculating on numerous mind-boggling scenarios of a hypothetical conflict. The reasons look obvious – but even if the UK military needs money so badly, why intimidate people this much?" the embassy's statement read.

"We absolutely do not accept unfounded accusations, which, by the way, lead to a loss of confidence in London also on the part of foreign partners," the Russian Embassy in the UK's spokesperson stated.

​The embassy noted that instead of such hypothetical issues London could discuss European security, "an important issue for all European nations including UK."

Russian military expert Viktor Murakhovsky told Sputnik on Friday, commenting on the issue, that the discussion of Russia's potential attack on the UK's undersea cables was merely "imagination."