A PLA general has made startling revelations about a flurry of scandalous espionage cases over the past decade, shedding rare light on a long list of senior cadres, diplomats and military officers allegedly spying for other countries.
Most of the espionage cases mentioned by Major General Jin Yinan were deemed classified, including ones involving a former head of the nation's nuclear programme and a former ambassador, with many shocking details made public for the first time.
The revelations were believed to have been made by Jin, director of the Strategic Teaching and Research Department at the National Defence University, during a recent internal government briefing.
It remains unclear how video clips of his 150-minute speech were posted on the internet. It is widely available on global sites like YouTube, but has been purged from video providers in China such as Youku.com and Tudou.com.
According to Jin, Kang Rixin, general manager of China National Nuclear, was one of the most senior officials involved in espionage cases in the nation's history.
While state media said Kang was jailed for life late last year on bribe-taking and other unspecified corruption charges, Jin said Kang was involved in selling critical national secrets about China's nuclear power industry to foreign countries.
The case of Kang - who was a member of the Communist Party's elite Central Committee and the Central Disciplinary Committee - dropped a political bombshell within the party's innermost circle, and prompted President Hu Jintao to launch a sweeping investigation of top party and government officials.