The heads of the U.S. and British foreign intelligence agencies held their first joint hearing in London on Saturday, speaking out about threats from Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, as well as ongoing wars in Europe and the Middle East.

CIA Director William Burns and MI6's Richard Moore discuss the Financial Times Weekend Festival at Kenwood House. The FT streamed it live.The discussion was moderated by Financial Times editor Roula Khalaf, who called it a “mystery session.”

Burns said the CIA had no better foreign partner in the world than MI6, while Moore highlighted the “high level of trust” between the two agencies.

“I can think of no better example of the importance of our working relationship than right before the war in Ukraine,” Burns said.

The agencies took a “novel approach” authorized by Putin at the time to declassify some of the intelligence about the planned invasion. “This was a way for me to disprove the false narrative that Putin had used in the past for many years,” Burns explained.

This approach “put Putin in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable position,” he added.

Moore said there was “a lot of real cooperation” between China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, evidenced by the presence of North Korean weaponry, Iranian drones and Chinese dual-use technology “sadly on the battlefield in Ukraine.” Unlike the CIA-MI6 relationship, he added, the relationship between the four countries is based on “rather somber and more practical foundations.”

Burns said the quadrilateral alliance “nevertheless remains problematic” and poses danger to innocent Ukrainian civilians as well as “our friends and partners in the Middle East.”

“Just as Russia chafed at being a junior partner to the United States after the end of the Cold War, we can predict that over time Russia will chafed at being a junior partner to China,” Burns said.

It was their first time on stage together…CIA Director Bill Burns and MI6 Director Richard Moore in live conversation with FT Editor Roula Khalaf #ftWeekendFestival We discuss Gaza, Russia, Ukraine, China, AI in espionage, our favorite spy gadgets, and more… pic.twitter.com/fNxuUQ65iL

— Financial Times (@FT) September 7, 2024

While China has not yet offered direct military assistance to Russia in its war in Ukraine, “we see a lot of things coming close to that,” Burns said.

“Whether Iran is using short-range missiles or other types of missiles,[to Russia]”That would be a dramatic escalation of the nature of defense cooperation,” Burns added.

Burns said Pyongyang “has already provided Moscow with short-range ballistic missiles” to use in attacks on Ukraine. (RELATED: 'Authoritarian Gas Station Attendant': Governor DeSantis Calls on Biden and Europe to 'Hit Putin Where It Matters')

Moore said Western support for Ukraine is “really tough, particularly in eastern Ukraine,” but “totally sustainable” despite Putin's intensifying “war of attrition, a Pyrrhic campaign of taking village after village.”

Moore described the Ukrainian military's incursion into Russia's Kursk region as “typically bold and daring.”

Burns hailed the Kursk offensive as a “significant tactical achievement” that boosted Ukrainian morale and exposed some of Russia's vulnerabilities. (RELATED: Zelensky says US and Western countries are 'wrong' to not allow Ukraine to launch armed attacks deep inside Russia)

But Burns warned that Putin is not fighting the last of his power in the war, nor is his grip on power at home necessarily weakening. “But you should never confuse a strong grip with a stable grip,” Moore added.

Referring to Russia's “reckless subversive activities across Europe,” Moore said Russian intelligence was “running a bit wild.”

“The CIA and domestic law enforcement are very focused on investigating whether Russia is facilitating illegal immigration into the United States through Mexico in order to sabotage the United States,” Burns said.

On Gaza, Burns said the US is working hard with Egypt and Qatar to finalise the White House's three-phase framework – hostage and prisoner exchange, a permanent ceasefire and rebuilding Gaza – into a “full proposal”. While up to 90% of the agreement is agreed upon, the remaining 10% is often “the hardest part”.