MI5 spy chief says Russia, China, Iran top threat list to UK

LONDON (AP) — Britain faces major security threats from the trio of Russia, China and Iran, which all use coercion, intimidation and violence to pursue their interests, the U.K.’s domestic intelligence spy chief said Wednesday.

Ken McCallum, director-general of MI5, added to mounting warnings from British authorities about Russia’s aggression and China’s growing assertiveness. He also singled out Iran as a mounting concern, saying U.K authorities have uncovered at least 10 “potential threats” this year to “kidnap or even kill British or U.K.-based individuals perceived as enemies of the regime.”

He said Iran’s intelligence services “are prepared to take reckless action” against opponents, both on Western soil and by luring people to Iran.

Last week, the U.K. government summoned Tehran’s top diplomat in London for a dressing-down, accusing Iran of threatening journalists working in Britain. U.K-based Farsi-language satellite news channel Iran International said British police had warned two of its journalists about “an imminent, credible and significant risk to their lives and those of their families.”

In a speech outlining the major threats to the U.K. from both hostile states and terror groups, McCallum said there is a risk Russia, China and Iran could help one another, “amplifying their strengths.”

He said Russia’s espionage capabilities had been dealt a “significant strategic blow” since the invasion of Ukraine from the expulsion of 400 spies working under diplomatic cover at Russian missions in Europe, including 23 in the U.K.

But, he said, British spies are still facing a “Russian covert toolkit” that includes assassination attempts, “cyberattacks, disinformation, espionage” and interfering with democracy.

“The...