It is the latest arrest in a campaign by Chinese security to clamp down on alleged foreign spying.

Chinese authorities say they have detained an individual alleged to be spying for Britain’s foreign intelligence service, MI6.

China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) said the individual was a foreigner and was trying to collect information inside the country.

It is the latest arrest in a campaign by Chinese security to clamp down on foreign spying.

The British government has not commented on the claims.

The news of the arrest came in a statement issued in a post from the MSS on the WeChat social network.

It said the alleged spy was named “Huang” and came from a “third country,” implying they were neither British nor Chinese. It said consular visits had been arranged following the arrest but did not say from which country.

  • limonfiesta@lemmy.worldEnglish
    10·
    6 months ago

    You’re not wrong, but maybe you’ve noticed that whenever any country announces they’ve arrested a spy, or foreign intelligence asset, the country they’re accused of spying for always, without fail, denounces it as political persecution and denies the allegations of spying.

    So…while there’s recent precedent for political detentions of citizens under false pretense of spying, it’s not like it’s that hard to believe they were a spy.

    The only real evidence we have that they aren’t a spy is that they weren’t summarily, and quietly, executed.

    We’ll just have to wait and see how they proceed. Will they be used for a prisoner swap of detained Chinese intelligence assets? Or held indefinitely.

    Because indefinite detention probably means innocent of spying, and waiting to be used for a political bargaining tool.