I warned of Russian sabotage at RAF base… hours later two men were arrested

Hours before two Latvian men were arrested at an RAF base used by Nato and US intelligence chiefs, a group of security officials gathered to discuss how to counter Russia’s escalating campaign of sabotage. Molesworth in Cambridgeshire is the US intelligence operations centre for Europe and Africa, as well as the Nato Intelligence Fusion Centre (NIFC), which provides intelligence to support operations carried out by the alliance. This week, it also became the site of a two-day conference, in which intelligence professionals from across Nato discussed topics including the importance of having “cognitive, intellectual superiority” over Russia as well as with conventional nuclear weapons. John Foreman, a former defence attaché to Moscow, spoke at the conference, where he was told security had been recently ramped up, with armed Ministry of Defence (MoD) police and US personnel, measures to prevent truck bombs, and guard dogs among layers of protection in place. “I was talking about the real threat, which I think is sabotage, espionage, arson, assassination, bribery, corruption, cyber. That was in the morning, and then in the evening they arrest two Latvian nationals,” he told The i Paper. “What happened in Molesworth is a useful reminder that we need to continue to strengthen our base security.” A police vehicle leaving RAF Molesworth, after two Latvian nationals were arrested at the base in Cambridgeshire (Photo: Chris Radburn/Reuters) MoD security patrols at Molesworth found an abandoned vehicle near the perimeter of the base at about 10pm on Wednesday before two UK-based Latvian men, aged 32 and 36, were arrested on suspicion of trespassing four hours later.They were released on bail on Friday as Counter Terrorism Policing probe for a motivation. Military experts said the incursion, the latest apparent breach at a UK facility used by US forces, highlights the need for security to be bolstered at bases across the country. Last year, Palestine Action activists allegedly broke into RAF Brize Norton and damaged two military aircraft, causing millions of pounds worth of damage to the Oxfordshire base. Separately, seven suspects have now been arrested after a suspected terror plot to target RAF Fairford two weeks ago. Counter Terrorism Policing say there is nothing to suspect a link with the Molesworth incident. They were then further arrested under the National Security Act 2023 on suspicion of entering a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the UK. While it was unclear if a foreign state may have been behind the Molesworth incursion, if one were, the finger of suspicion would point most firmly at Russia, Foreman said. Around a quarter of Latvia’s population is ethnically Russian. Why would military sites be targeted? When targeting military bases, Moscow was more focused on espionage than previous threats such as from the IRA during the Troubles, whose primary goal was to kill British personnel, he said. A recce to probe for vulnerabilities, install listening devices, attach a device to jam satellite communications or highlight a weakness in base security, were among possible aims of such an incursion. In 2024, Russia’s shadow fleet of cargo ships was suspected of launching swarms of drones that flew over three air bases in Norfolk and Suffolk. “I was [at RAF Molesworth] saying why does Russia and other state actors use that strategy – because it’s to try to offset against our superiority, our information superiority, our conventional superiority, our economic superiority,” Foreman said. “As Russia’s relative inferiority broadens against the West, we can expect them to step up these attacks, and I think they’ll be taking more risks.” One military source said the alleged breach at Brize Norton by Palestine Action where security was “evidently not taken seriously” was “part of a sadly quite prominent tradition now with the Royal Air Force”. They cited a Taliban raid on Camp Bastion in 2012 in Afghanistan which killed two US Marines and left 17 injured as another example. “Americans were killed because British security failed to secure the perimeter,” they said. “Had Palestine Action been more competent, did a little bit more research, they could have done a lot more damage [at Brize Norton] “And Fairford, which is a clown show, and resulted, I would imagine, in a security review where the Americans decided it wasn’t worth the risk keeping a strategic asset there because the British weren’t taking security seriously. And now we have this.” Bases ‘not equipped to deal with drones’ General Sir Richard Barrons, a co-author of the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), said Molesworth was a “significant” base for supporting military intelligence. Although a perimeter fence appeared to have been breached gaining access to the “buildings that do things there-that’s a much harder problem”. But he warned more security measures were needed to guard UK military bases amid a heightened threat from drone attacks. “That’s a combination of technology, cameras and sensors, people and dogs and counter UAS [drone] capability,” he said. “[Molesworth] is a sensitive target, but there are many sensitive targets in the UK. Nuclear installations, RAF main operating bases, other intelligence facilities, and I would say even, big Army bases that hold an awful lot of military equipment.” As well as a change in the potential type of attack, tensions over support for Ukraine and disputes between Nato and Russia had raised the threat. “It’s also a more serious risk, and means that probably arrangements that were suitable for calmer times need to be strengthened,” he added. David Cattler, Nato’s former assistant secretary general for intelligence and security, said the NIFC’s significance is “not simply producing intelligence reports”. “It helps Nato develop a shared understanding of the threats it faces, which is essential when 32 nations must make decisions and act together,” he said. The circumstances at the Moleford demanded “a serious investigation”, he said. “But I’d distinguish between a breach of physical security and a compromise of intelligence or operations. We know the former occurred. We don’t yet know whether the latter was even attempted. “The questions are what the individuals intended, what they actually did, and whether anyone directed or supported them.” Russia would “certainly have a strong intelligence interest” in the activities conducted at Molesworth, he added, but the suspects’ nationalities said nothing about their motivation or affiliations. The MoD said in a statement: “We remain highly vigilant to potential threats against defence sites and work closely with the police and our allies to keep them secure. The protection of our bases is kept under constant review, with a multilayered approach that includes physical barriers, patrols, surveillance, monitoring and counter-drone capabilities.”