Ambassador does not deny Russia is tracking UK nuclear subs with sensors

Russia's ambassador to the UK has not denied allegations that Russian sensors have been hidden in seas around Great Britain in an attempt to track UK nuclear submarines.

Andrei Kelin said that while he did not deny Russia was attempting to track British submarines, he rejected the idea that such activities presented a threat to the UK.

Asked on BBC One's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg whether he objected to the claims, Andrei Kelin said: "No".

"I am not going to deny it, but I wonder whether we really have an interest in following all the British submarine with very old outdated nuclear warheads... all these threats are extremely exaggerated," he said.

Pressed further by Kuenssberg, the ambassador added: "I'm denying existence of threats for the United Kingdom. This threat has been invented, absolutely, there is no threat at all from Russia to the UK."

Kelin's admission follows an investigation published by the Sunday Times earlier this month, detailing the discovery of alleged Russian sensors in seas around Britain.

In its investigation, the Sunday Times said the devices are believed to have been planted by Moscow to try to gather intelligence on the UK's four Vanguard submarines, which carry nuclear missiles.

The British military discovered the existence of the devices and deemed them a potential threat to national security, the paper reported.

The devices have been characterised as being part of a hybrid - or "grey zone" - war being fought by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Other activities of such warfare could include doing damage to infrastructure assets, such as energy pipelines.

• Putin's secret weapon: The threat to the UK lurking on our sea beds

The accusations come after the Royal Navy released images in March of a Russian warship that it tracked sailing near British waters.

Named Boikiy, it is one of several Russian vessels to have been tracked sailing near the British coast in recent months.

Defence Secretary John Healey told MPs in January that the Royal Navy had monitored a Russian spy ship after it was spotted around UK waters - accusing the vessel, called Yantar, of being used to gather intelligence and map the UK's underwater infrastructure.

Former Conservative defence and Foreign Office minister Tobias Ellwood has warned that the UK is "behind the curve" in tracking Russia's deep-sea operations.

Ellwood told the Guardian earlier this month the use of sensors was "only half the story", claiming that Russia has established "remote seabed platforms" off the UK coast that act as recharging stations for dozens of mini-submarines "to map our undersea cable networks for potential sabotage".

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson told BBC News: "We are committed to maintaining and enhancing the security and resilience of critical undersea infrastructure.

"Just as the defence secretary called out the activities of the Russian spy ship Yantar hovering over our undersea cables, let those who threaten the UK or our allies be in no doubt that we will defend our undersea infrastructure."

Responding to the Sunday Times investigation into the sensors, an MoD spokesman said: "Alongside our NATO and Joint Expeditionary Force allies, we are strengthening our response to ensure that Russian ships and aircraft cannot operate in secrecy near the UK or near NATO territory, harnessing new technologies like AI and coordinating patrols with our allies.

"And our continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent continues to patrol the world's oceans undetected as it has done for 56 years."