The United Kingdom needs to reinforce its naval capabilities to ensure the Atlantic remains accessible and to safeguard the maritime routes, subsea cables and energy infrastructure on which the country depends, according to the head of the Royal Navy.
First Sea Lord Gen. Gwyn Jenkins said Britain is confronting a level of maritime security risk not experienced since the Cold War. In a speech delivered at Admiralty House in central London on Wednesday, Jenkins pointed to growing Russian activity in the North Atlantic and around strategically important underwater infrastructure. His remarks repeatedly drew comparisons with the challenges faced during the Second World War’s Battle of the Atlantic.
Jenkins referred to Winston Churchill’s wartime memoirs to underline the strategic importance of the Atlantic to Britain. Churchill, he said, recognised that the ocean was not merely an area beyond Britain’s shores but a fundamental element of national security. Jenkins argued that the Atlantic continues to play a critical role in protecting the UK and supporting NATO’s ability to reinforce Europe, requiring what he described as a collective national effort.
The First Sea Lord said the UK must maintain awareness of activity across the Atlantic, secure critical assets and ensure maritime routes remain operational. He also argued that potential adversaries should understand that the consequences of coercion or military aggression would outweigh any potential benefits. Strengthening warfighting preparedness and renewing Britain’s understanding of its identity as a maritime nation, he said, would be essential to maintaining an advantage in the region.
Britain’s Growing Dependence on Maritime Routes
Jenkins highlighted how Britain’s reliance on the Atlantic has increased over the eight decades since the Second World War. Almost all of the country’s international trade is transported by sea, while maritime routes also carry the majority of its energy supplies, food, raw materials and exports.
He described this dependence as a significant contradiction: although the Atlantic is arguably more important to Britain’s security and economy than ever, its importance has become less visible in everyday public awareness.
According to Jenkins, maintaining influence over the Atlantic has historically depended heavily on control of the sea’s northern approaches. He pointed to the German occupation of Norway during the Second World War as an example of how control of northern waters could threaten Allied shipping. During the Cold War, the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom (GIUK) gap similarly played a major role in the strategic defence of the North Atlantic.
Northern Waters and the Russian Threat
Jenkins said the Norwegian Sea, Arctic region and northern approaches should not be regarded as remote operating environments. Instead, he characterised them as Britain’s maritime frontier with Russia.
Within this environment, he highlighted the growing importance of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), a UK-led defence partnership comprising the five Nordic countries, the three Baltic states and the Netherlands.
The ten JEF members are expected to conclude a “Northern Navies” agreement during 2026. Jenkins said the initiative is intended to move the alliance away from occasional or short-term cooperation toward a more continuous and integrated maritime presence in response to the security challenges posed by Russia.
He also pointed to advances in Russian naval capabilities, including sophisticated submarines that are increasingly difficult to detect, long-range precision weapons and specialised deep-water systems. According to Jenkins, Russian forces are actively examining and testing the Atlantic’s underwater environment.
The Royal Navy is dedicating increasing personnel and resources to monitoring Russian naval activity. Jenkins said British warships are being deployed for this purpose at an average rate of two vessels each week.
Moving Toward a Hybrid Navy
Jenkins also defended the Royal Navy’s plans to develop what he calls a “hybrid Navy.” The concept centres on combining traditional crewed warships with uncrewed vessels, drones, autonomous sensors and interconnected data networks.
Under this approach, individual ships would operate as components within a larger network rather than functioning independently. Jenkins argued that the scale and complexity of a contested ocean make it increasingly difficult for crewed warships alone to provide comprehensive maritime defence.
The proposed model combines established naval capabilities with newer autonomous and remotely operated technologies. According to Jenkins, a crewed warship supported by a network of uncrewed escorts, drones and autonomous sensors presents a substantially different operational proposition from a ship operating on its own.
The strategy therefore seeks to integrate traditional naval platforms with emerging technologies, combining crewed and uncrewed systems to strengthen Britain’s ability to monitor, protect and operate across the Atlantic.
