Senior Tories have warned that Britain will have its own “Pearl Harbour moment” to contend with “sooner than we think”. The warning came from former MP Dr Bob Seely, speaking at the Conservative Party Conference.
Attack on banks and infrastructure
Dr Seely told the Daily Star that “the next Pearl Harbour against us will be soon”. He cautioned that it would not be a physical attack on the UK like the one the Americans suffered at a naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1941.
“It will come at the hands of Russia – and our existence as we know it will be destroyed,” he warned. “It won’t be blowing up our army, or a fleet like in 1941. It will be disabling our means of being able to raise an army. It could be destroying a bank – Putin will do whatever he can to defeat us.”
Changing nature of war
He added: “The nature of war is changing, and our societal resilience will be challenged. They will spark panic on the streets of our countries, smash the food supply continuously and then they might burn mosques and churches.”
Tory shadow cabinet minister Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst MP said “we need to be war ready and work with our allies across Europe to fight Russia”. He criticised Prime Minister Andy Burnham for “not spending enough on defence”.
“I think the defence budget is a national disgrace,” he said. “I think it’s embarrassing that this country has become essentially the laggard of Europe. You’ve got something drastically wrong if you are spending most of your budget on welfare.”
Hybrid warfare and lab leak fears
The threat of World War III continues to loom, with Russia ramping up its “hybrid warfare” across Europe. Moscow has frequently warned NATO it is prepared to use nuclear force if it keeps supporting Ukraine.
The development comes as US experts have raised epidemic fears after a suspected Russian lab leak killed a worker. Fears have been triggered following the mysterious death of Siberian laboratory worker Daria Shipilova, 28, who fell ill in Shelekhov.
Reports from inside Russia claim the lab technician smashed a glass test tube packed with lethal bacteria while working at the secretive Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute. Kremlin officials deny any lab disaster occurred, claiming Daria died from “pneumonia of unknown aetiology”.
But strict isolation measures and sudden hospital lockdowns have sparked worries regarding a possible cover-up. Dr Andrew Weber, a former US Department of Defence official who has previously inspected Soviet-era anti-plague labs, warned Western authorities must act fast.
Dr Weber told The Sun: “If I were a public health authority in London, I would be monitoring flights and passengers coming from the region and screening them at the airport.” He warned the threat level could skyrocket if it is confirmed that Daria contracted the pneumonic plague – the terrifying airborne strain that caused the medieval Black Death.
