UK Government Hit By Chinese Spying Operation: Senior Officials’ Private Communications Exposed

A recent spying operation compromised senior members of the UK government, exposing their private communications to Beijing. The operation, known as Salt Typhoon, targeted phones of close aides to Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and Rishi Sunak between 2021 and 2024, according to Express. co. uk. The breach went “right into the heart of Downing Street,” a source with knowledge of the breach said.

Intelligence sources in the US indicated that the Chinese espionage operation was ongoing, raising concerns that Sir Keir Starmer and his senior staff may also have been exposed. MI5 issued an “espionage alert” to Parliament in November about the threat of spying from the Chinese state. Sir Keir’s upcoming visit to China, the first by a British prime minister since 2018, has raised concerns about national security.

Critics, including Alicia Kearns, a shadow minister for national security, accused Labour of jeopardizing national security by taking a soft line on hostile Chinese activity. The attack raises the possibility that Chinese spies could have read text messages or listened to calls involving senior members of the Government, as reported by Express. co. uk.