London, Oct. 13 (SANA) MI5 chief Ken McCallum has warned that threats to the United Kingdom from foreign adversaries have quadrupled over the past decade, identifying Russia as the main state threat and raising concerns over Iran-linked activities and the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI).
In his annual speech in London, McCallum said MI5 was devoting more resources to countering state threats than at any point during the Cold War. He warned that Russia was waging hybrid warfare while AI was intensifying the cybersecurity contest between attackers and defenders.
McCallum also warned of growing threats from extreme right-wing terrorism, saying MI5 had identified terrorists seeking to exploit AI, including by integrating the technology with drones.
He said the greatest risk from the misuse of AI was extremist groups using the technology to exploit new and existing biological weapons. He added that countering terrorism and state threats had reached roughly equal levels of activity, marking a major shift in recent years.
Russia’s hybrid warfare campaign
McCallum said Russia had stopped short of direct conventional conflict with NATO and was instead seeking to destabilize European countries, while making minimal and extremely costly progress in its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Hybrid warfare generally refers to non-military methods, including cyberattacks, sabotage and disinformation, used to exert pressure on adversaries and undermine stability. Such operations are often carried out through intermediaries, while Russia routinely denies involvement despite allegations and evidence cited by Western governments.
McCallum said MI5’s efforts to identify and expel Russian spies had left the Kremlin increasingly reliant on intermediaries to carry out attempted attacks.
“With its traditional covert footprint eviscerated by almost 1,000 expulsions since the invasion, the Kremlin’s global toolkit is weak,” he said, adding that Russian operatives were increasingly turning to criminals to carry out their plans.
“These are not the actions of a great power with the strategic upper hand,” he said.
His remarks come as an increasing number of European leaders have warned that Russia could be preparing attacks to test their commitment to supporting Ukraine.
Russian interference in the Brexit debate
Asked about recent comments by Prime Minister alleging Russian interference in the Brexit referendum, McCallum said attempts by Moscow to influence the debate were not new. However, he distinguished between attempted interference and its actual impact on the outcome.
He said Russian media outlets, internet trolls and bot networks had sought to influence the debate surrounding the 2016 referendum, while stressing that the result itself was not in dispute.
McCallum also expressed concern about the ongoing debate over Russian interference, warning against exaggerating the influence of such operations.
“I am a little bit anxious that we don’t play into our adversaries’ hands by making these trolls look 10ft tall,” he told reporters.
MI5 warns of Iran-linked activities
McCallum also warned that Iran was expanding its hybrid campaign in the UK, saying authorities had made 50 arrests over Iran-linked activities in the past year.
He said much of the activity had targeted Jewish communities, while other operations had focused on more heavily protected sites, including military facilities.
Although McCallum did not directly refer to arrests linked to RAF Fairford during his speech, he told reporters afterward that the incident was not unique.
“We have seen Iranian interest beyond RAF Fairford in the UK,” he said.
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