German party employee suspected of spying for China

The man is named by the prosecution as Jian G. and is accused of having spied on Chinese opposition figures in Germany and of having shared information regarding the EU Parliament with Chinese intelligence.

Among other things, he is said to have passed on information regarding negotiations and decisions in parliament. The man lived in Brussels and in Dresden in eastern Germany, where he was arrested on Monday. His apartments have been ransacked.

– He stands accused in a very serious case of work for a foreign intelligence service, says a statement from the prosecution.

Concern in the AfD

The man works as an assistant to EU parliamentarian Maximilian Krah, according to AFP. He is the top candidate for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in the EU elections.

In a statement, the party refers to the arrest as “very disturbing”.

– But as we have no more information regarding the case, we have to wait for the further investigation by the federal prosecutor’s office, says party spokesman Michael Pfalzgraf.

China rejects espionage

The Chinese Foreign Ministry dismisses the accusations as fabrications and an attempt to smear China.

Spokesperson Wang Wenbin says that China always adheres to a principle of not getting involved in other countries’ internal affairs, and that China hopes that the “relevant personnel” on the German side will put aside their Cold War mentality.

– It aims to discredit and suppress China, Wang said at a press conference.

More espionage arrests

The arrest came on the same day that three Germans suspected of spying for China were arrested in another case. They are suspected of having planned to exchange information regarding technology that can be used militarily.

Germany’s Interior Minister Nancy Faeser refers to the case as “an attack on European democracy”, and says that the espionage charge is “extremely serious”. She goes on to say that whoever has such an employee bears the responsibility.

The arrests came a week following German Prime Minister Olaf Scholz visited China to improve trade relations between the countries and discuss China’s support for Russia.