Russia and Iran Are Stepping Up Their Hybrid Campaigns Against the United Kingdom — Reuters

Iran is stepping up its attempts to attack more complex targets, including military facilities on British soil. At the same time, Russia is escalating its hybrid activities directed against Ukraine’s allies. This was stated by the head of the British domestic intelligence service, MI5.

In his annual address covering a wide range of threats to the United Kingdom, McCallum emphasized that over the past decade, the number of threats from these states has quadrupled. As a result, MI5 is now allocating more resources to counter them than it did during the Cold War.

Russia, which also denies any involvement in hostile activities in the United Kingdom, remains the “number one aggressor,” the head of British intelligence stressed.

He agreed with the assessments of other European intelligence services that Russia is employing tactics that border on conventional armed conflict. As examples, McCallum cited an attempted drone attack on a cargo plane at a German airport and a cyberattack on Poland’s energy infrastructure.

“It is no coincidence that Russian aggressors are trying to destabilize other European countries precisely at a time when their military successes in Ukraine are minimal and come at a terrible cost,” McCallum noted.

He also noted that he fully agrees with Prime Minister Bernam’s recent statements that Russia attempted to interfere in Brexit ten years ago.

McCallum did not present any new evidence, but he reiterated previously known concerns about Russian media outlets, which “became quite actively involved in the campaign around the time of the referendum,” advocating for the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU. He also noted that “there was a second attempt at interference—through internet trolls.”

At the same time, he stated that there is no evidence that these efforts influenced the outcome of the Brexit vote. It is generally believed that their impact was negligible. McCallum added that further discussion of this issue would play into Russia’s hands.

“I’m somewhat concerned that if we all continue this discussion for a few more days, Russian trolls—who, it seems, have not achieved much at various times over the past few years—will be thrilled to find themselves back in the headlines, despite the relatively negligible impact of their actions at every stage of this process,” The Guardian quoted him as saying.

On Monday, Burnham also stated that Iran is most likely involved in a suspected plot to attack the Royal Air Force Fairford (RAF Fairford) airbase. American bombers used this base to launch strikes against Iran. The incident triggered large-scale security measures and led to the withdrawal of American aircraft from the base following a decision by U.S. President Donald Trump.

This was stated by Ken McCallum, Director General of the British domestic intelligence service MI5, according to a report citing Reuters.

Russia and Iran are secretly developing supersonic weapons — FT.

The Iranian military command has threatened the U.S. with new strikes.

Iran announced the launch of a military operation against U.S. forces following new U.S. strikes on its territory. According to the Iranian news agency Tasnim, the targets included U.S. military bases and other U.S. facilities in the region. However, at the time of these reports, no country in the Middle East had officially stated that it had been attacked by Iran.