British intelligence
agencies told Prime Minister Teresa May that Russia "wants to turn Libya
into a new Syria" and use its presence there to influence the West, the
British newspaper Sun says, citing a high-ranking source in the British
government. The head of the international committee of the
British parliament Tom Tagendhat called these messages "extremely
alarming" and demanded that the British leadership respond to the
threat.
According
to the newspaper, the leaders of the British special services said May
that Russian President Vladimir Putin "wants to turn this North African
country into" his new Syria, "and Moscow’s main goal is to seize control
of the largest route of illegal migration to Europe."
Sun
writes that "dozens of officers of the Russian military intelligence of
the GRU and its special forces are already in eastern Libya, having
originally arrived here to train and maintain a communication channel." Moscow
supports the head of the Libyan National Army, Marshal Khalifa Haftar,
and "supplies his troops with heavy equipment," the newspaper writes.
“Two Russian military
bases are already operating in the coastal cities of Tobruk and
Benghazi, using as a cover the Russian private military company Wagner,
which already has outposts,” the newspaper says.
The
publication also writes, without giving grounds for such allegations
and sources of information, that "in Libya, the destructive Russian
anti-ship Caliber missiles and modern S-300 air defense systems are
already deployed."
"If Moscow
seizes control of the coastline of the country, it could trigger a new
wave of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea," writes Sun, referring
to a high-ranking government source.
"What
Putin is doing in Libya corresponds exactly to the tactics he used to
apply in Syria and the Crimea. He sees the uncontrolled space and uses
it to maximize influence on the West. At the same time, we are extremely
vulnerable to both migration flows and oil crisis, which may cause Libya, "- said the source of the newspaper.
The head of the international committee of the British parliament demanded that the government react to the "Russian threat."
“The
fact that Russia wants to open a new front against the West in Libya is
extremely alarming, but it shouldn’t be surprising. They will no doubt
try to use African migration routes. We need a coordinated government
response because destabilization of this country is closely linked to UK
national security ", Said Tgendndat.