As Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Serbia on the second leg of his European tour, authorities across the continent were grappling with a wave of Chinese spying allegations.
Meanwhile on Tuesday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak revealed that “malicious actors” had compromised British military pay records, with reports blaming China.
In one case, three Germans were arrested on suspicion of arranging the transfer of sensitive technology information to China. In another case, a man named Jan G., who worked for a far-right German member of the European Parliament, was arrested on suspicion of espionage. Maximilian Kula, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) member of parliament for whom Jan G. worked, denied any personal wrongdoing.
And in Belgium, authorities in January accused far-right politician Frank Kleierman of having been used as a spy agent for China for several years, following an investigation by the Financial Times, Der Spiegel, and Le Monde. A criminal investigation was launched against him.
Experts say the recent increase in arrests and investigations reflects the changing mood in Europe regarding the Chinese threat.
“Much of this activity has been around for some time,” said Martin Thorley, senior analyst at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. “Despite the uncomfortable nature of dealing with this issue at the same time as market dependence and supply chain linkages in China, countries are now being forced to confront this issue. This has been around for some time. But it was abandoned for too long.”
Roderich Kiesewetter, a German lawmaker and former army officer, said Germany’s secret services had been warning “for several years” about the Chinese threat, but “the warnings…were deliberately not heeded.” Ta.
He noted that the recent arrests in Germany would have sent a “stronger signal” if they had been announced before Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s visit to Beijing in April. Instead, they were made public days after Scholz returned to Germany.
In recent years, as attitudes toward China have hardened, the pace of Chinese influence operations in Europe has intensified, through traditional espionage and more “gray zone” activities such as influence peddling and cross-border repression. There are also concerns that
Nigel Inkster, former deputy director general of MI6, says Europe has increased its focus on the Chinese intelligence threat since 2019. “It engages in Chinese activities, both simple espionage and influence operations,” he said.
China has dismissed the spying allegations as “malicious slander.”
Inkster said the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, revelations of human rights abuses in Xinjiang, China’s support for Russia in the Ukraine war, and concerns about China’s economic behavior have led to European institutions’ attention to Chinese intelligence activities. He said it is increasing.
Experts say Chinese spies have three main priorities. Gather information about sensitive industries. and monitoring the diaspora, especially ethnic minorities such as Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Hong Kongers.
When it comes to overseas nationals, Soley said Chinese spies have several objectives. “This is to suppress criticism, go to court in cases that favor individuals, and gather information. As a result, many diaspora groups are exposed to the dual threat of xenophobia if relations with China deteriorate. They face an increased risk of being targeted by Chinese party and state authorities.
Kiesewetter believes targeting diaspora groups is aimed at making them feel “insecure” and spreading the message that Germany is unable to protect its people on its own soil.
China’s goals were “nuanced and strategic,” Inkster said. “They don’t mean destruction in and of themselves. If there is chaos, China will try to take advantage of it. But that’s one thing and actually causing chaos is another thing.”
China’s intelligence operations are traditionally understood to be controlled by the Ministry of State Security (MSS), which combines intelligence gathering, security services, and secret police. It is said to be a combination of FBI and CIA.
In recent months, MSS has become increasingly vocal about its activities. Last year, the agency launched its own WeChat account to publicize its efforts to root out spies and terrorists. In January, he accused MI6 of hiring foreign consultants to spy on China.
However, Thorley said there was also a “potential network” of private companies and organizations in the UK working to advance the interests of the Chinese Communist Party. “They are not micromanaged…but if the party wants, they will pull the strings and get what they want.”
Sari Arjo Havren, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said this highlights the fact that “China operates asymmetrically.” “We can’t match the scale of the resources that China puts in, so the complexity is very difficult to detect.”
