Germany arrests 3 on suspicion of spying for China, as Britain charges 2
- Developments come hours apart amid rising anxiety in some European capitals over the threat of Beijing’s surveillance practices
- Germans accused of gathering sensitive industrial data with military uses while British case tied to parliamentary research
Early in the day, federal prosecutors announced that three German nationals had been arrested on “strong suspicion” of spying for Chinese intelligence services.
Hours later, British authorities charged two men under the Official Secrets Act over allegedly spying for China. This case concerns Christopher Cash, a parliamentary researcher whose arrest last March made headlines.
The double whammy comes amid rising anxiety in some European capitals over the threat of Chinese surveillance practices and as authorities mull how to counter foreign interference in democratic institutions, industry and academia.
“We are aware of the significant threat posed by Chinese espionage in business, industry and science,” said Nancy Faeser, the German interior minister, in a statement.