<\/p>\n
LONDON: The UK is taking threats of foreign interference elections expected later this year \u201cvery seriously\u201d, the defence minister said on Sunday, after a warning from a counter-terrorism official.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, that\u2019s something that we take very seriously,\u201d Shapps told the Sky News<\/em> channel.<\/p>\n Counter-terrorism bodies and other institutions would \u201cbe looking very carefully at that\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n UK counter-terrorism chief Matt Jukes said Friday that the espionage threat from foreign states \u2014 such as China, Russia and Iran \u2014 is greater now than it has been \u201csince the days of the Cold War\u201d.<\/p>\n He said the police had set up a new unit to counter the threats of interference ahead of the election, which is expected to be called later this year. \u201cWe are talking about parts of the state apparatus of Iran, China and Russia,\u201d Jukes said.<\/p>\n A report by US software company Microsoft in November last year said Russia, Iran and China were likely to engage in sophisticated influence and interference efforts before the 2024 US election and other polls.<\/p>\n