“I have a very simple message for Russia. We know what you are doing. And you will not succeed,” she said

British Prime Minister Theresa May accused Russia of meddling in elections and spreading fake stories in the media in an extraordinary attack on its attempts to “weaponise information” in order to sow discord in the west. This was reported by the Guardian.

The prime minister spoke out against “the scale and nature” of Russia’s actions during an address at the lord mayor’s banquet, saying it was “threatening the international order on which we all depend”.

Saying about Russia’s attempts to undermine western institutions in recent years, she said: “I have a very simple message for Russia. We know what you are doing. And you will not succeed. Because you underestimate the resilience of our democracies, the enduring attraction of free and open societies, and the commitment of western nations to the alliances that bind us.

“The UK will do what is necessary to protect ourselves, and work with our allies to do likewise.”

Since Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, May said Russia had “fomented conflict in the Donbass [eastern Ukraine], repeatedly violated the national airspace of several European countries, and mounted a sustained campaign of cyber-espionage and disruption”.

“This has included meddling in elections, and hacking the Danish ministry of defence and the Bundestag [German parliament], among many others,” she told the audience of City of London business figures.

“It is seeking to weaponise information. Deploying its state-run media organisations to plant fake stories and photo-shopped images in an attempt to sow discord in the west and undermine our institutions.”

She said the UK did not want to “return to the Cold War, or to be in a state of perpetual confrontation” but the UK would have to act to protect the interests of the UK, Europe and rest of the world if Russia continues on its current path.

As it was reported earlier support for terrorism in the world, in particular, separatism in Donbas from other countries, calls into question international rules, stated the British Prime Minister Teresa May during her speech at the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly.

"...when countries back groups like Hezbollah to increase instability and conflict across the Middle East, support so-called separatists in Ukraine to create instability on Europe’s eastern borders, or give tacit support to criminal groups launching cyber-attacks against our countries and institutions, they call into question the very rules and international systems that protect us. And that is why, both globally, but also in our own continent of Europe, the UK will remain steadfast in our commitment and responsibility to ensure the security and stability of our friends and allies as we have done for generations.

May stressed that the United Kingdom will be resolutely responsible for ensuring the safety of "friends and allies".

"We all have to decide and act on the level of responsibility to each other. I'm talking about the role of the UN in the fight against terrorism. This is the work where we are members of a critical responsibility where the UN itself cannot cope. Terrorism, conflicts and instability, which we see all over the world, is in many ways determined by the actions of individual countries through intermediaries. In particular, supporting the so-called separatists in Ukraine, in order to destabilize the eastern borders, all this calls into question the international home rule ", - she said.