China’s Ministry of State Security said in a statement on Friday that the suspect, known by his surname Zeng, works for an unknown Chinese military industrial group in a position that gave him access to important classified information. CNN.
According to the ministry, the 52-year-old Zeng was sent by his employer to Italy on a study trip, where he could be recruited by a US embassy official.
The department claimed that as their relationship deepened, it was revealed that the US official was a CIA officer. Zeng was allegedly offered huge sums of money and emigration to the United States for his family in exchange for sensitive information on the Chinese military.
According to the statement, Zeng signed an espionage agreement with the United States and received an evaluation as well as training.
After completing his studies, Zeng returned to China and is said to have met several times with CIA agents to provide basic intelligence. The ministry said it took mandatory action against Zeng after an investigation uncovered evidence of his spying activities. The case was referred to the Public Prosecution for review and prosecution.
The scandal is swollen
China’s announcement of the alleged CIA spy comes a week after two American sailors were arrested in California for allegedly passing sensitive US military information to Chinese intelligence.
China’s Ministry of State Security is a civilian agency that oversees intelligence and counterintelligence both inside and outside China. Its scope of work is similar to that of the joint operation of the CIA and FBI, but its work is more secretive – it does not even have a public website to describe its activities.
Recently, however, the ministry has received more publicity. On August 1, he launched a public account on Wechat, the Chinese super app, calling on all members of the community to join the counterintelligence and offering rewards and protection to those who provide information.
Friday’s announcement on Zeng’s case was also posted on the ministry’s Wechat account.
The Chinese army also has its own intelligence agency
The United States and China have always spied on each other, but the recent deterioration in relations between the world’s two largest economies has intensified this rivalry.
CCP leaders have long promoted the narrative that foreign forces are trying to undermine the country’s rise, while Xi Jinping, China’s most assertive and authoritarian leader in a generation, has made state security his first priority.
Last month, China introduced a revised version of its already comprehensive anti-espionage law, further broadening the definition of espionage.
In 2021, CNN reported that the agency is overhauling the training and management of its spy network to focus more on adversaries like China and Russia as part of a broader transition.
