World News | Britain Says Anyone Carrying out Activity with Russian Authorities Now Needs to Register
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Britain's government is placing Russia on the top tier of a government security programme aimed at protecting the UK from malign foreign influence, the security minister said Tuesday.
London, Apr 1 (AP) Britain's government is placing Russia on the top tier of a government security programme aimed at protecting the UK from malign foreign influence, the security minister said Tuesday.
Home Office minister Dan Jarvis told lawmakers that anyone or any company “carrying out activity as part of any arrangement” with Russian authorities — including government agencies, armed forces, intelligence services and the parliament — will need to register with the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme from July 1 or face five years in prison.
Russian political parties that are controlled by the Russian government will also need to declare what they are doing before they can carry out activity in the UK directly.
Britain's government said the programme is a key tool for the “detection and disruption of harmful activity against our country.”
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Jarvis cited hostile Russian acts in recent years including the use of the deadly nerve agent Novichok to poison a Russian ex-spy and his daughter in 2018, the targeting of British members of Parliament through cyberattacks and other espionage tactics.
“And clearly Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine has highlighted its intent to undermine European and global security,” he added.
Iran was the first country to be listed under the programme earlier this month. Lawmakers have questioned for months why China isn't included.
“There is no question, in my mind, China should be in that enhanced tier,” said Chris Philp of the opposition Conservative Party. "We know China engages in industrial-scale espionage, seeking to steal technology from government, universities and from industries. They repress Chinese citizens here and have sought to infiltrate our political system.”
Jarvis did not directly respond, only saying that his government is taking a “long-term and strategic approach” to managing its relationship with China. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)