Britain under attack from 20 foreign spy agencies including France and Germany
Britain under attack from 20 foreign spy agencies including France and Germany
Spies from 20 foreign intelligence agencies, including Nato allies such as France and Germany, are attempting to steal Britain's most sensitive secrets.
By Sean Rayment, Security Correspondent
Last Updated: 4:45PM GMT 08 Feb 2009
Russia and China have been identified as having the most active spy networks operating in the UK but it is understood that some European countries are also involved in espionage attacks against Britain.
Details of the spy plots were revealed in a government security document obtained by The Sunday Telegraph which states that Britain is "high priority espionage target" for 20 foreign intelligence agencies.
Security sources have revealed that the list of foreign agencies operating within the UK includes Iran, Syria, North Korea and Serbia, as well as some members of the European Union, such as France and Germany, who have traditionally been regarded as allies.
The document, marked "restricted", warns that foreign spies are trying to steal secrets related to the military, optics, communications, genetics and aviation industries.
The report, which was drawn up by an Army intelligence cell inside Whitehall, warns that it is too easy to "lose sight" of the threat from traditional espionage and become solely focused on attacks by al Qaeda.
The document, which has been distributed to all government departments, states: "Whilst our primary threat would seem to come from International Terrorism, it is important that we do not lose sight of another omnipresent threat. Espionage against UK interests continues to come from many quarters."
The report, dated 19th January 2009, continues: "In the past, espionage activity was typically directed towards obtaining political and military intelligence. In today's high-tech world, the intelligence requirements of a number of countries now include new communications technologies, IT, genetics, aviation, lasers, optics, electronics and many other fields. Intelligence services, therefore, are targeting commercial enterprises far more than in the past.
"The UK is a high priority espionage target and a number of countries are actively seeking UK information and material to advance their own, military, technological, political and economic programmes.
"It is estimated that at least 20 Foreign intelligence services are operating to some degree against UK interests. Of greatest concern are the Russians and Chinese. The number of Russian intelligence officers in London has not fallen since the Soviet times."
A Whitehall source told The Sunday Telegraph that Russia uses its massive spy network as an "extension of state power" in an attempt to "further its own military and economic base".
The source said: "If a country, such as Russia or Iran, can steal a piece of software which will save it seven years in research and development then it will do so without any hesitation. Russian agents will target anybody that they believe could be useful to them. Spying is hard-wired into the country's DNA. They have been at it for centuries and they are simply not going to stop because the Cold War has ended."
The source added that Britain's European neighbours, including Germany and France, were also engaged in industrial and political espionage within the UK.
Many senior figures in Britain's intelligence community are frustrated by the activities of Russian spies which they claim is detracting from the fight against al-Qaeda and international terrorism.
In a speech in November 2007, Jonathan Evans, the director general of MI5, said that foreign intelligence services were active in the UK, with the Russians at the forefront of covert operations.
He said: "Despite the Cold War ending nearly two decades ago, my service is still expending resources to defend the UK against unreconstructed attempts by Russia, China and others, to spy on us.
"A number of countries continue to devote considerable time and energy trying to steal our sensitive technology on civilian and military projects, and trying to obtain political and economic intelligence at our expense.
"They do not only use traditional methods to collect intelligence but increasingly deploy sophisticated technical attacks, using the internet to penetrate computer networks.
"It is a matter of some disappointment to me that I still have to devote significant amounts of equipment, money and staff to countering this threat.
"They are resources which I would far rather devote to countering the threat from international terrorism – a threat to the whole international community, not just the UK."
Patrick Mercer, the chairman of the House of Commons counter-terrorist subcommittee, said the document served as a warning to Britain that the Cold War espionage threat had not gone away.
He said: "Britain is at the forefront of many cutting edge technologies and these are extremely attractive to lots of other countries, some of whom may actually be our allies.
"This serves as a timely reminder that our counter-intelligence assets must not be solely concentrated on countries with a traditional track record of espionage against us."
