Chinese top spy agency exposes espionage case involving UK's MI6
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MI6 has used a foreigner in China to collect secrets and information.
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A Chinese paramilitary police officer stands guard outside the British Embassy in Beijing. (AFP)
China's security officials discovered another case of spying in which the British Secret Intelligence Service, widely known as MI6, utilized a foreigner in China to gather secrets and information.
The China case showcases the continuous confrontations between the two nations over claims of alleged surveillance that endangers their respective national security.
On Monday, China's Ministry of State Security stated on its WeChat social media account that a foreigner, only known by the surname Huang, was in control of an international consulting organization and that MI6 had established an "intelligence cooperative relationship" with him in 2015.
According to the statement, M16 then told Huang to enter China multiple times and use his public identity as a cover to gather China-related intelligence for British spies.
MI6 also provided Huang with professional intelligence training in Britain and other locations, as well as specific espionage equipment for intelligence cross-linking, according to the Chinese authorities.
"After careful investigation, the state security organs promptly discovered evidence of Huang's involvement in espionage activities, and took criminal coercive measures against him," the government statement said.
Meanwhile, the British government claims that Chinese spies are targeting its personnel in important positions in politics, defense, and industry as part of an increasingly sophisticated effort to access classified information.
In September, China vehemently denied allegations that an espionage suspect arrested in the United Kingdom was gathering information on behalf of Beijing.
At the time, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning asserted that "the so-called claim that China is conducting espionage activities against the UK is pure fabrication," emphasizing that "China resolutely opposes this."
Mao Ning urged the United Kingdom to stop "spreading disinformation" and "anti-China political manipulation," which she described as "malicious slander".
Also in September, the Sunday Times reported that a researcher employed by the UK House of Commons and another individual were arrested in March under suspicion of espionage for China.
