According to the Chinese authorities, they have uncovered a case of espionage for the US secret service CIA. A 52-year-old Chinese national named Zeng has been convicted of spying for the CIA, the Chinese Ministry of State Security said in a statement published on the Internet on Friday.
The ministry did not give details of the punishment of the 52-year-old, but only spoke of “coercive measures against him in order to eliminate the damage in good time”.
According to the statement, Zeng had been sent to Italy for study purposes, where he befriended a CIA agent stationed at the US embassy in Rome. He persuaded Zeng to provide “sensitive information” about the Chinese military. In return, he and his family were promised “high compensation” and support in moving to the USA.
The vague definitions of espionage in the legal text give the Chinese authorities greater scope than before to intervene in the activities of foreign companies and organizations in the People’s Republic.
International Expert on China’s Expanded Counterintelligence Law
According to the report, Zeng signed a contract with the US side and was trained to spy on his home country before returning to China. The case immediately attracted a lot of attention in China: In the morning it was at the top of the list of most clicked topics on the Weibo platform.
In its statement, the State Security Ministry specifically cited the Counterintelligence Act, which was expanded last month and gives the authorities unprecedented powers to combat any activity they deem a threat to national security.
According to the law, which went into effect in early July, the unauthorized obtaining of “documents, data, materials and objects related to national security and national interests” may constitute an espionage crime. The same applies to “trust in espionage organizations and their agents”.
According to international experts and institutions, the vague definitions of espionage in the legal text give the Chinese authorities greater scope than before to intervene in the activities of foreign companies and organizations in the People’s Republic. In view of the tense relations between Beijing and the USA, US companies in particular could be affected.
The US Counterintelligence Agency (NCSC) warned that the new law would give Beijing “extended legal bases to gain access to and control over data owned by US companies in China”. US companies and citizens in China face future criminal charges for “traditional business activities” if Chinese authorities classify these activities as espionage, the NCSC said. (AFP)