An aide to the main AfD candidate in the European elections was arrested in Dresden for spying for China. Three more arrests of alleged Beijing informants were made yesterday.

“This is a particularly serious case” according to the German authorities, who for weeks have been faced with an increasing number of espionage cases, either in favor of Moscow or in favor of Beijing.

The word today, Tuesday, about Jan J. a close associate of the head of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) European ballot, Maximilian Kra, who was arrested in Dresden after his apartment was raided on charges of espionage for China.

Specifically, according to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe, the arrested person is a German citizen with Chinese roots, known to the German authorities for over ten years, who allegedly acted on behalf of the Chinese State Security Service (MSS). The case seems to cross Germany’s borders, as Jan J. he was officially an associate of a far-right MEP and acted as an informer between Brussels and Dresden.

According to the information that has come to light, the arrested person was allegedly giving the Chinese secret services classified information from the European Parliament. This is sensitive data that is considered critical for Beijing. Jan J. he is also alleged to have spied on dissident Chinese citizens living in Germany.

A wave of arrests this week

Just on Monday, the German authorities had proceeded to the arrests of three other espionage suspects, specifically in Dusseldorf and Hesse. These are two men and one woman, who are also alleged to have acted as informants on behalf of the Chinese secret services, but are not, according to what is known so far, related to the case of Yan J.

Those arrested are said to have operated specifically in the field of technological espionage, monitoring and transmitting information mostly for military purposes. According to German public television, the three arrested may have targeted German research programs that could be useful in expanding China’s sea power.

Chinese Embassy: China smear campaign

However, the possibility of using scientific information from key research programs in polytechnic schools, mainly East German universities, is of particular concern. As the tagesschau.de website points out, “China’s espionage activity aimed at economic advantages but also for military purposes is considered one of the biggest threats to the German economy and German universities.”

At the same time, Beijing categorically rejects German accusations of espionage by Chinese agents. In a statement, the Chinese embassy in Berlin says: “We call on the German side to stop exploiting espionage cases with the aim of political manipulation and defaming China’s image.”

It is worth noting that just a few days ago Chancellor Olaf Solz had been on an official visit to China with expanded contacts.

SOURCE: Deutsche Welle