Number of US submarines off UK’s coast have DOUBLED this year as NATO allies send a message of strength to Russian menace Vladimir Putin

• Double usual number of Nato submarines are moving near Faslane naval base
• Follows severing of major underwater internet cables near Shetland last month 
• This was a fortnight after two Norwegian Nord Stream pipelines were sabotaged 

Britain is on the front line of an underwater Cold War as US patrols are stepped up to ward off the menace of Russian submarines.

Double the usual number of Nato submarines have been spotted on the surface of the Clyde recently, heading to and from the key Faslane naval base 40 miles from Glasgow.

Sightings so far this year stand at 85 compared with 43 for the whole of 2021, and include a string of America’s most advanced Virginia-class fast-attack submarines.

The increase follows the severing of major underwater internet cables last month off Shetland, the Faroes and the South of France, a fortnight after two Norwegian Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic were sabotaged.

Britain is on the front line of an underwater Cold War as US patrols are stepped up to ward off the menace of Russian submarines. Pictured: USS Georgia off HMNB Clyde in August

The head of the UK’s Armed Forces, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, has warned that Russian submarines were threatening cables crucial to communication and that any attempt to damage them could be considered an act of war.

In a visit to BAE Systems’ shipyard in Govan, Glasgow, to see the Royal Navy’s latest anti-submarine frigate being built, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace spoke of the Russian threat to ‘critical national infrastructure, gas pipelines and internet cables’.

He added: ‘The one thing Putin is going to have left after his illegal invasion is a navy and air force. We need ships that are going to hunt these submarines or deter them.’

Yesterday, former Royal Navy Commander Tom Sharpe said the increased visibility of America’s most advanced submarine on the Clyde – 23 sightings this year against 13 in 2021 – was a clear message to saboteurs. 

In a visit to BAE Systems’ shipyard in Govan, Glasgow, to see the Royal Navy’s latest anti-submarine frigate being built, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace spoke of the Russian threat to ‘critical national infrastructure, gas pipelines and internet cables’

Sightings of the Royal Navy’s Trident-carrying Vanguard-class subs, plus its Astute attack subs, have also shot up, with 48 this year compared with 21 in 2021. Subs and frigates from the French, Norwegian, Dutch, Danish and Polish navies are also regular visitors.

The UK has 60 undersea cables carrying about £8.5 trillion a day in international bank transactions.

An MoD spokesman said Faslane is ‘routinely used by our allies’.

A US spokesman said: ‘Our submarine operations greatly benefit from the flexibility at Faslane.’

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