In a significant development, German authorities have apprehended an aide to a prominent far-right member of the European Parliament under suspicion of espionage for China, marking another instance in a series of arrests across Europe linked to alleged Chinese espionage.
The individual in question, identified as German national Jian G and an employee of AfD MEP Maximilian Krah, was detained by Saxony State criminal police in Dresden, with subsequent searches conducted at his residences, as revealed by the prosecutor’s office early Tuesday. The aide’s identity is conventionally disclosed by their first name and the first initial of their family name in accordance with German practices.
Following the arrest, the European Parliament suspended the aide, as confirmed by a spokesperson for the institution to CNN.
Prosecutors disclosed that Jian G allegedly relayed information pertaining to “negotiations and decisions in the European Parliament” to China in January. The head of Krah’s office corroborated the arrest of the aide in Dresden.
This development transpired just days after the arrest of two men and a woman in Germany for purportedly spying for China, coupled with charges against two men in the UK for alleged breaches of Britain’s Officials Secrets Act.
“Jian G. is an employee of a Chinese secret service. He has been working for a German Member of the European Parliament since 2019,” affirmed the statement from the prosecutor’s office.
“In January 2024, the accused repeatedly passed on information about negotiations and decisions in the European Parliament to his intelligence service client. He also spied on Chinese opposition members in Germany for the intelligence service,” it elaborated.
The lawmaker employing the suspect was swiftly identified by German media as Maximilian Krah, a 47-year-old AfD member of the European Parliament. Krah holds positions on various committees, including the Committee on International Trade and subcommittees on human rights and Security and Defence.
The far-right AfD party, of which Krah is a member, holds nine seats in the European Parliament and is set to compete alongside Germany’s traditional parties in the upcoming European elections in June, with Krah serving as the party’s top candidate.
Germany’s interior minister, Nancy Faeser, condemned the alleged espionage, branding it as an “attack from within on European democracy,” while also criticizing Krah for his involvement.
The AfD’s co-chairwoman, Alice Weidel, assured that the party is taking the espionage allegations seriously. Meanwhile, Tino Chrupalla, the other co-chair, disclosed that Krah would be meeting with party leaders to address the situation.
Furthermore, three German nationals were arrested on suspicion of violating the Foreign Trade and Payments Act on behalf of China, with allegations involving the acquisition and export of a specialized laser without authorization.
China reacted vehemently to the series of arrests in Germany, denouncing them as “hype” aimed at “discrediting and suppressing China.”
In a parallel development, the Crown Prosecution Service in the UK announced charges against two individuals for allegedly breaching the Officials Secrets Act on behalf of China.
