China claims a couple working for the government spied for Britain’s MI6

Hong Kong
CNN
—

China accused Britain on Monday of recruiting a couple used by the Chinese central government to spy for the British intelligence service (MI6), in light of the two countries exchanging accusations of spying.

In a statement, China’s civilian spy agency, the Ministry of State Security (MSS), said it had recently uncovered a “major espionage case” involving MI6, uncovering two important spies “planted by the British side within our ranks.”

This allegation comes just weeks after British police Three people were charged of spying for Hong Kong’s intelligence service, following charges brought in April against two other people accused of spying for China, including a former researcher for a prominent lawmaker in the ruling Conservative Party.

These accusations came in the UK after the Chinese MSS project He said In January, it arrested the head of a foreign consultancy who was alleged to have spied for MI6.

Under Xi Jinping, China’s most authoritarian leader in decades, the country’s notorious secret spy agency has dramatically raised its public profile and expanded its remit. From an obscure organization with no clear public face, the ministry has transformed into a highly visible presence in public life.

Over the past six months, the Department of Homeland Security has made regular public announcements about dismantling foreign espionage operations, claims that are impossible to verify given their nature but that paint the agency in a positive light and provide regular reminders to Chinese citizens to be vigilant.

In its latest statement on Monday, the Department of Homeland Security detailed its allegations against the couple.

It said an alleged spy, identified by his surname Wang, was working in a position “with access to key classified information” in an unnamed central government agency.

In 2015, Wang’s application to study in the UK under an exchange program was quickly approved because MI6 valued his arrival, according to the MSS.

While studying in Britain, Wang was invited to meals and tours organized by MI6 to understand his “character weaknesses and personal interests,” the MSS said.

After discovering that Wang had a “strong desire for money,” the British spy agency used one of its graduates to lure him with a high-paying part-time consulting opportunity, MSS said.

“The British side started with open research projects and gradually moved to the basic internal affairs of our central state agencies, paying him fees much higher than normal consulting rates. Although Wang was somewhat wary of this matter, he continued to provide so-called services “Advisory” to the British side under the temptation of large sums of money.

After a while, Wang was approached by MI6 employees to work for the British government with promises of higher financial rewards and security guarantees, MSS claimed.

The statement said Wang agreed to the terms and received espionage training before being asked to return to China to gather intelligence.

The MSS claimed that MI6 repeatedly urged Wang to persuade his wife – who worked for a “key” government agency – to join the espionage, offering to double the money. Despite his initial hesitation, Wang and his wife, surnamed Zhou, eventually agreed, MSS claimed.

The case is under investigation, according to MSS.

CNN requested a comment from the British Foreign Office, which handles media inquiries into the Secret Intelligence Service, which is the official name of MI6.

In August last year, MSS Her first appearance on social media: It launched an official account on WeChat, the most popular social app in China, with a rallying call to “all members of society” to join its fight against foreign infiltration. Her posts regularly receive hundreds of thousands of views and are widely shared by state media.

According to the MSS, foreign spies are everywhere and infiltrating everything – from Mapping applications to Weather stations. The ministry had earlier published details of what it claims are espionage activities by Western spy agencies, detailing how Chinese citizens studying or working abroad have allegedly been kidnapped. They were recruited By the CIA.