The Russian Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that Britain must take the first step to restore direct military contacts, declaring that London initiated the breakdown in defense dialogue by expelling Moscow’s military attache last year.

Breakdown of channels

The ministry noted that Britain expelled the Russian military attache in May 2024, disrupting the traditional channel of communication between the two defense establishments. “It was London that initiated the curtailment of dialogue through the defense ministries,” the ministry said, adding that Moscow has periodically received signals from London indicating interest in restoring contacts but no practical steps have followed.

Blackout since 2022

No direct communication has occurred between British and Russian military chiefs since September 2022, when then-Chief of the Defense Staff Admiral Tony Radakin spoke with Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov following an incident involving a Russian aircraft and an RAF surveillance plane over the Black Sea, according to British media reports. Subsequent British attempts to re-establish contact were reportedly unsuccessful, and British officials are now facing pressure to restore high-level military communication amid concerns that the absence of direct channels could increase the risk of miscalculation.

Moscow’s condition

Commenting on British media reports that claimed UK defense chiefs were under pressure to “reboot” communication channels with their Russian counterparts, the ministry said it had taken note of the claims. “Therefore, it is precisely they who should take the first step to ‘fix’ it’,” the ministry said, referring to the disruption caused by London’s expulsion of the attache.