UK Spy Chief: Russia Is Waging ‘Reckless’ Sabotage Campaign in Europe

Britain’s foreign intelligence chief warned on Friday that Russia was waging a reckless sabotage campaign in Europe and accused President Vladimir Putin of a mixture of “deception and aggression”.

In a rare public speech abroad, Richard Moore, head of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS, also known as MI6), said Iran was affected by the decline of allied militias in the Middle East but was “threatened” by its nuclear programme. all of us.”

“Even as Putin and his minions resort to nuclear weapons nonsense to spread fear about the consequences of aiding Ukraine and challenge the resolve of the West, we have recently uncovered a stunningly reckless Russian sabotage campaign in Europe,” Moore said in Paris. “We took it out,” he said.

He did not reveal details about the nature of the sabotage but said such “activity and rhetoric” was “beyond dangerous and irresponsible.”

Moore acknowledged the cost of Western support for Ukraine, which has been struggling with Russia’s full-scale invasion since February 2022.

But he warned that “the cost of not doing so will be much higher.”

“If Putin is allowed to succeed in turning Ukraine into a vassal state, he will not stop there,” Moore said.

“If Putin is successful, China will consider the consequences, North Korea will be emboldened and Iran will become even more dangerous,” he said.

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But Moore continued: “We have no doubt that our Ukrainian friends have the will to win.”

He said British and French intelligence services were “critical” in informing decisions made by their respective governments “so they can successfully handle Putin’s mix of bluster and aggression.”

Moore said that Russia relies on support from China, Iran and North Korea, and that, according to the West, North Korea’s military aid to Moscow now includes the deployment of troops.

“Putin is jeopardizing Russia’s future, pouring vast sums of money into his own military machine, and squandering tens of thousands of lives, including Russia’s and now North Korea’s, in this disastrous conflict,” Moore said.

‘I have never seen a more dangerous world than this’

Meanwhile, Moore said Iran’s nuclear ambitions pose a major global security threat even after Israel’s blows against Tehran-backed militant groups Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

“Iran’s allied militias in the Middle East have suffered serious blows. But the regime’s nuclear ambitions continue to threaten us all.”

Western countries have long accused Iran of obtaining nuclear weapons, but Tehran denies this accusation and fears that increasing tensions with Israel over Gaza and Lebanon will accelerate this process.

After officials in the United States and Europe warned that Iranian exiles risked murder and even kidnapping, Moore said the “Iranian regime continues its efforts to eliminate dissidents at home and abroad.”

Moore, the former British ambassador to Türkiye, has combined his career in the secret service and diplomacy and is the first head of M16, traditionally known as “C”, to be active on social media.

“In my 37 years in the intelligence profession, I have never seen the world in such a dangerous situation,” he commented.

At the highly unusual event organized by the UK embassy in Paris to celebrate security and intelligence ties, Moore was introduced by his French counterpart Nicolas Lerner, head of France’s Directorate General for External Security (DGSE).

Lerner said the “possible proliferation of nuclear weapons in Iran” poses “one of, if not the most critical threat in the coming months.”

“The exchange of intelligence will be vital for our authorities to be able to make the right decisions and determine the right strategies,” the French intelligence chief added.