British spy chief warns of growing threat from Russia and China to Western countries

Britain and its allies have a “narrowing window” to pre-empt security risks posed by China, Russia and other adversaries, Britain’s top intelligence official warned on Wednesday.

In a rare public address, Anne Keast Butler, director of Britain’s intelligence, cyber and security agency, GCHQ, said Britain was at a “critical juncture” as it faced increasingly brazen acts from hostile states.

“China is now a scientific and technological powerhouse with advanced capabilities across intelligence, cyber and military institutions,” Keast Butler will say, according to excerpts of his speech released in advance by his office.

As AI continues to develop rapidly, she says, “the ground beneath our feet is shifting”, but new technologies are “narrowing the window for the UK and our allies to stay ahead”.

Earlier this month, two men were found guilty of spying for China in the UK for the first time in history. Last month, the FBI, along with cyber agencies from nine other countries including the UK, Germany and Japan, issued a joint warning that threat actors linked to China were using covert networks and “botnet operations” to carry out malicious cyber operations.

Cybersecurity needs to become “10 times more urgent” going forward, Keastbutler said, calling for stronger digital defenses “from the boardroom to the living room.”

Keast-Butler will also highlight the growing threat from Russia, accusing it of “escalating its daily hybrid activities against the UK and Europe”.

He will say that the Russian government is “relentlessly targeting critical infrastructure, democratic processes, supply chains and public trust” and will warn that “the risk of miscalculation is as high as we have ever seen.”

NATO describes hybrid warfare methods as using non-military tactics such as propaganda, deception and sabotage to destabilize an adversary.

“In the face of such aggression and disruption, GCHQ is working tirelessly with intelligence and defense partners to weaken and mitigate the Russian threat,” Keast Butler said on Wednesday. “While we remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is retreating on the battlefield.”

Last May, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, along with the FBI, the U.S. National Security Agency, and international partners, issued an advisory detailing a “Russian state-sponsored cyber-espionage campaign targeting technology and logistics companies.”

Separately, U.S. officials warned that “pro-Russian hacktivist groups are conducting less sophisticated and low-impact attacks against critical infrastructure.”

Keast Butler said in a speech that British intelligence “thwarts Russian efforts to smuggle Western technology, fends off cyberattacks and counters reckless sabotage and assassination attempts.”

“While we remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine, President Putin is retreating on the battlefield,” she would say.

Her speech will mark the 80th anniversary of the UKUSA intelligence agreement, which evolved into the Five Eyes security alliance of the UK, US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.