SDR Calls For New Royal Navy Focus On CUI Protection

The Royal Navy must take on a new explicit responsibility for protecting critical undersea infrastructure (CUI), according to the Strategic Defence Review (SDR) just published by the U.K. Government.

Among the 62 recommendations in the 144-page report, the full text of which was released yesterday (Monday) by the U.K. Ministry of Defence (MoD), it stated: “The Royal Navy must play a new, leading and coordinating role in securing the U.K.’s critical undersea infrastructure and maritime traffic that is vital to daily national life.

“As part of this, the Royal Navy must work with wider Government and commercial partners to develop enhanced maritime surveillance through existing and novel capabilities.”

The SDR calls for the Royal Navy to play a key role “to deter maritime incidents similar to the sabotage of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline and the cutting of undersea data cables in UK and international waters.” 

To do so, it must ramp up its adoption of uncrewed and autonomous systems to provide surveillance and deterrence. The report stated: “The Royal Navy must fulfil new roles and continue to evolve how it fights: moving towards a dynamic mix of crewed, uncrewed, and increasingly autonomous surface and sub-surface vessels and aircraft.”

Among the programmes it references in this regard is Atlantic Bastion, the Royal Navy’s North Atlantic security plan. While its predominant focus is the threat from Russian submarines and North Atlantic security, Atlantic Bastion also involves the use of uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) and uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs).

The Royal Navy has already begun this process via initiatives such as Project Cetus, a three-year initiative which resulted last month in the unveiling of XV Excalibur, its first extra-large uncrewed underwater vehicle (XLUUV).

The 19-tonne drone vessel, 12 metres long and 2.2 metres wide, is thought to be the largest uncrewed sub currently being trialled by any European navy.

A two-year programme of sea trials has begun to help pave the way for future crewed/uncrewed underwater and surface asset collaboration.

• You can read the full SDR document via the U.K. MoD website