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And in a further indication of the way in which Britain is gearing up for heightened security challenges in the years to come, he has also confirmed that the ship will be equipped with a new missile system developed at a cost of close to £1billion, which is now fully operational.

He also took the opportunity to underline the increased threat posed by Vladimir Putin’s Russia, whose warships have encroached on British waters on numerous occasions in recent years.

Mr Williamson confirmed the decision in a speech to the defence and security think tank the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) yesterday.

The Royal Navy Type-23 Frigate will head for the UK’s £40 million National Support Facility in Bahrain, which was officially opened last month by Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa and the Duke of York, next year.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson was speaking at RUSI

All of this signals we’re investing heavily in the Middle East at a time of unprecedented uncertainty. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson

Britain’s presence in the region was scaled back in 1971 with the closure of the naval base at HMS Juffair, also in Bahrain.

Smaller minehunter vessels have been based in the Gulf for a decade, but crews have deployed via Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships.

The opening of the new support base and the deployment of a Type-23 frigate ups the ante.

Mr Williamson said: “In the Gulf we have our new naval support facility in Bahrain at Juffair, and our commitment to the port of Duqm in Oman.

A Type-23 frigate of the kind being sent to the Gulf

“All of this signals we’re investing heavily in the Middle East at a time of unprecedented uncertainty.

“At a time when we’re facing a generational change in the threats to our interests, when our great values of liberty, justice and tolerance, are under attack from every angle, we must always have that confidence to speak out, to stand up, to act when challenged.

“That’s why even as we leave the European Union, you will not find the UK retreating to its shores, exchanging isolation for foreign policy.

“Instead you will find us seeking to expand our friendships, expanding our influence, extend our trading lines, and out of the shadow of present danger, shine the beacon of democracy that so many nations have always looked to Britain for.”

The Type-23 frigates are now equipped with the high-tech Sea Ceptor missile system