Senior British police officials have identified Russia, Iran, and China as responsible for an increasing number of life-threatening operations on UK soil. These operations include violent attacks, kidnappings, assassination plots, and acts of sabotage. Authorities report that these countries often deploy criminal proxies and sometimes even teenagers or children to carry out these activities. The scale, complexity, and intensity of these operations have grown rapidly, surpassing the expectations of both British and allied intelligence agencies. British counter-terrorism commanders have emphasized the growing threat posed by these foreign state-backed proxies in the UK.