Britain’s chief spook sees China as the main intelligence threat
Saying so publicly is part of a more open approach to spycraft
FOR THE better part of a century, the main preoccupations of the head of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, more commonly known as MI6, have been the malfeasance of Russians or terrorists or—as in the latest James Bond movie, “No Time to Die”—some combination of both. But times are changing. On November 30th Richard Moore, the spy agency’s boss, gave his first public speech since taking charge in October 2020. Russia and terrorism featured on his list of the “big four” priorities, as did the challenge from Iran’s revolutionary regime, which is moving steadily closer to being able to develop a nuclear weapon. But despite Russia’s alarming military build-up around Ukraine and a recent terrorist attack in Liverpool, China was his primary concern.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Open book”
Britain December 4th 2021
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