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Vladimir Putin is waging a second cold war - and this time he’s winning, Tom Watson warned today.

The Deputy Labour Leader said the Kremlin had "reinvented blitzkrieg for the digital age" through a campaign of misinformation, malicious technology and dark money.

He suggested Theresa May 'declined' a request from security services to investigate Russian influence ahead of the the Brexit referendum.

And a whistleblower claimed Russian agents may still be actively infiltrating and undermining political networks in the UK.

Speaking at an event on the Fringe of Labour Party Conference, Mr Watson called for a full-scale pubic inquiry into Russian influence in the Brexit Referendum.

(Image: REX/Shutterstock)

Mr Watson said it was a “dark story about the frontiers of the new Cold War.

“It’s dark because it is turbo powered by tech.

“And unlike the last cold war, Putin’s Russia is winning.”

Mr Watson said: “All of us need to wake up to the true scale of what’s been going on.

“Now is the time when the government must drop the three wise monkeys act: see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil - about the biggest threat to the integrity of our democracy. The Russian attack.

“It’s time we woke up to the reality that Russia has reinvented the blitzkreig for the digital age. A new strategy to attack far behind our old defences, to attack us from within.

“They’re prepared to kill on the streets of Salisbury. But just as dangerous is their long war to divide and rule.”

He added: “This is where we need government agencies and authorities to step in, but I’m not confident that they will.”

Mr Watson has joined forces with fellow Labour MPs Darren Jones and Liam Byrne to launch a petition calling for a full public inquiry, with powers similar to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's inquiry into alleged Russian interference in the US election.

He said: “Without the powers to interview under caution, to subpoena documents and transactions records and to request assistance from foreign jurisdictions, such networks are practically impossible to crack.”

If such a petition were to gain 100,000 signatures, it could force the issue to be debated on the floor of the House of Commons.

Mr Watson also claimed to have been told Theresa May, while she was Home Secretary, "declined" a request from the security services to investigate Leave.EU founder Arron Banks.

He said: "I don't know if this is true, and none of us will if there isn't a proper investigation

"Whatever the Prime Minister did or didn’t do now is the time for the truth to out."

The Mirror has approached the Home Office for comment.

A spokesman for Arron Banks said the request was "declined because there was nothing to investigate."

Speaking at the same event, Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Chris Wylie hinted Russian efforts to undermine British political parties may still be ongoing.

He said: "There was a concerted Russian operation inside of particular political networks in the UK. Some of those may be ongoing.

He added: "If you are Russia, your goal is not to advance a particular political ideology. Your goal is to divide what you see as your geopolitical foes.

"Chaos is your objective, and that happens on all sides. It's not just Ukip.

"If you are trying to undermine a country, you will do it from all sides."

Mr Watson added: "I do think that if it is proven that the Russians tried to subvert a party like Ukip, why wouldn't they try to subvert parties on the left?

"When we know their stated objective is to undermine institutions like the EU and chip away at our liberal democracy.

"The trick, of course, is how do you discover that? Chris obviously knows something I don't, and I'm going to talk to him later, but I do think vigilance is important."