Putin plot might set off ‘mass casualties’ as UK branded ‘softest goal’
Vladimir Putin is ready to cause “mass casualties” on European soil – and Britain has become the “softest target” for deadly Russian strikes, a military expert has warned.
Keir Giles from the Chatham House think-tank claims the Kremlin has been escalating covert attacks across the continent for years while Western politicians stick their heads in the sand.
And in a chilling wake-up call, the defence analyst warned that it will take a strike killing “hundreds of people” before European leaders finally realise the terrifying threat staring them in the face. Giles said that Russia’s brutal campaign has already moved far beyond traditional espionage, with Moscow actively plotting deadly attacks that threaten innocent lives.
Giles claims incendiary devices hidden inside package shipments are a sign of what’s to come from Russia(Image: Getty Images)
Speaking to the Daily Star, he said: “The reality is Russia has been escalating for years and we’re in this situation now where they can carry out these very brazen and provocative actions because nobody stopped it beforehand.
“They can continue to press, probe and do more dangerous things. The principle with Russia is that the longer you leave it to lay down a marker and say this is unacceptable, the more bloody and messy it becomes.”
The expert pointed to an alleged Russian sabotage campaign in 2024, where incendiary devices were hidden inside package shipments and planted on DHL cargo flights, as a terrifying preview of what is to come.
Putin’s aggressive hybrid war is creeping ever closer to Western borders(Image: Ukrainian Emergency Service via)
The devices ignited inside freight hubs in Birmingham and Leipzig airport in Germany, but experts claim it was a dry run to blow up commercial planes mid-air.
“What’s more likely to cause mass casualties are things like the airline plot where they planted incendiary devices on cargo shipments for commercial aircraft,” Mr Giles said. “If one of those had come down on top of a city then we’d be talking about hundreds of casualties.
“Russia’s already willing to consider doing things that will kill large numbers of European citizens. But what’s missing is the recognition among European countries that Russia is already in this mindset and is willing to cause this amount of damage.”
Boris Johnson was in Ukraine last weekend when a train he was on had to be evacuated (Image: CARLOS ORTEGA/EPA/Shutterstock)
The warning comes as Putin’s aggressive hybrid war creeps ever closer to Western borders. In an incident near the Polish border last weekend, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson narrowly avoided disaster when a Russian drone blew up a passenger train shortly after he had departed.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski warned the Russian threat is now “inside the house”, pointing to arson attacks, attempts to derail moving trains and drones drifting into NATO airspace.
On Monday, an armed Russian Gerbera 2 drone carrying an explosive warhead was fished out of the Baltic Sea off a Polish beach. Yet despite the escalating danger, Mr Giles warns that decades of neglect have left the UK dangerously exposed to Mad Vlad’s aggression.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski warned the Russian threat is now ‘inside the house’ after a train was attacked near the border(Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service/AFP via Getty Images)
He said: “The national conversation on defence that was called for in the strategic defence review hasn’t happened. Not just the current government, but previous ones over decades have pretended we don’t have a problem.
“Russia can look beyond the frontline states for soft targets that will achieve what they want and possibly the softest target at the moment is the UK.”
Mr Giles warned that the consensus among top Russia watchers is grim. He said: “it will take a mass casualty incident and hundreds of people dead before it actually shocks politicians into recognising that it has to stop.”
Giles reckons that decades of neglect have left the UK dangerously exposed to Putin’s aggression(Image: AFP/Getty Images)
He slammed European leaders for refusing to take tough decisions to cripple Moscow’s war machine, including the “absurd and obscene” failure to use frozen Russian assets in Brussels to fund Ukraine’s defence.
Demanding an immediate and brutal response to stop Putin in his tracks, Giles urged Western nations to hit back where it hurts, including shutting down Russian essential services with retaliatory cyber strikes.
“If they conclude that Europe is not willing to respond, why would they not push further and actually pursue their objectives through an overall attack,” Giles said. “That’s another reason why it’s so important to get the message across to Russia that there will actually be a cost to this.”
An MOD spokesperson said: “Russia should be in no doubt about the resolve of this Government to stand against Russian aggression, in Ukraine and against the UK and our allies.
“Backed by £298 billion over the next four years, we are transforming our Armed Forces following the Strategic Defence Review which sets out our path to warfighting readiness, ensuring our forces have the capabilities needed to meet growing threats.
“This includes investing over £3 billion in space capabilities, £2.5 billion in cyber and £400 million to protect our undersea cables and pipelines – ensuring our Armed Forces have the capabilities they need to meet threats of today and tomorrow.”
