A group of cross-party MPs has called for a “whole of society”
approach to combatting grey zone threats and strengthening
homeland resilience, in a report published today.
Grey zone activities are attacks below the threshold of war,
encompassing a wide range of activities: sabotage, espionage,
cyber-attacks and disinformation campaigns. Recently, the speed,
scale and intensity of grey zone threats in the UK has increased.
“Whole of society” approach to homeland defence
The Defence Committee's report “Defence in the Grey Zone” urges
the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to proactively engage with wider
society – including businesses, schools and communities – to help
generate an informed dialogue around grey zone threats to the UK
and build consensus around a common response.
The MOD could pitch this ‘offer' to society, in conjunction with
building cyber skills and awareness – from protecting critical
national industries, and preventing ransomware attacks, to
teaching school children to stay safe online.
By sharing its crisis management expertise with other departments
and wider society, the MOD can help strengthen long-term
resilience planning and preparedness across the UK. This would
also allow the Armed Forces to focus on their primary
responsibility during any serious international conflict,
deterring or defeating military threats, the report concludes.
To lead work across Government, the Committee calls for the
appointment of a dedicated minister for homeland security.
Strengthening the Joint Expeditionary Force and
protecting undersea cables
Today's report underscores the role of the Joint Expeditionary
Force (JEF) in combatting 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.
The report calls on the MOD to consider increasing the permanent
presence of JEF 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.
Chair of the Defence Committee, MP, 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.
“Today's report calls on the Ministry of Defence to engage with
the rest of government, with industry and with wider society to
improve our resilience and strengthen our defences at home.
“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
cyberattacks, or from disinformation. 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.
“The damage repeatedly caused to undersea cables highlights the
importance of protecting critical infrastructure. The UK-led
Joint Expeditionary Force needs additional capabilities to
provide further deterrence against Russian sabotage, and the MOD
should consider increasing our military presence in the Baltic.”
