One of the men, a young Briton known for his hawkish views on China, worked as an aide to a prominent member of the British Parliament. Another, a German citizen of Chinese descent, was an assistant to a member of the European Parliament representing Germany’s far-right.
The espionage cases in Britain and Germany, the first of their kind in two countries that once cultivated warm relations with Beijing, served as eye-catching exclamation points in Europe’s long, often anguished break-up with China. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday.Accusations last week that China was using spies to burrow into and influence the democratic process in Germany and Britain caused particular alarm, as they suggested a push to expand beyond already well-known, business-related subterfuge into covert political meddling, something previously seen as a largely Russian specialty.
His change of heart mirrors a wider shift across much of Europe in attitudes to a rising superpower that long counted on European countries, particularly Germany, to push back against what it denounces as “anti-China hype” emanating from Washington. But its interior minister, Nancy Faeser, has now given a blunt assessment of China’s activities. “We are aware of the considerable danger posed by Chinese espionage to business, industry and science,” she said. “We are looking very closely at these risks and threats and have issued clear warnings and raised awareness so that protective measures are increased everywhere.”
Since then, the public prosecutor in Dresden has begun a “pre-investigation” into how much Krah knew of his employee’s ties to China. On Wednesday, his party decided to keep supporting Krah’s bid for reelection to the European Parliament but disinvited him from campaign stops.
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