British minister of state for security and borders Damian Hinds has labelled Iran, China, North Korea and Russia “hostile nations.”
He accused the countries of using their “human capability” and “cyber presence” to run disinformation campaigns.
He added that the four nations pose cybersecurity threats to the UK.
He also said that Iran, China and Russia have been involved “multiple ways” in cyber attacks, real world spying, and that they have soldiers on standby.
"The three countries that I mentioned to you have the physical human capability, they have a big cyber presence, they're able to deploy at scale," he told The Telegraph.
Hinds’ comments echo those of Richard Moore, the head of Britain’s MI6 intelligence service, who in November made the claim that Iran, China and Russian along with terrorist threats are the “big four” security concerns for the UK, according to an Associated Press report.
Moore said that China was the “single greatest priority” for the intelligence service, claiming that Chinese spies were were running a disinformation campaign against the UK and its allies to influence public perception. He also said that Iran and Russia were threats to the country.
He added that the UK and its allies needed to work together to “deter Russian activity,” a claim that the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service said was jeopardizing the possibility of renewed bilateral talks between Russia and the UK.