US charges Chinese dissident with espionage for Beijing amid ongoing concerns over Chinese intelligence activities
Aug 26, 2024
Washington, DC [US], August 26 : Federal prosecutors in New York have filed criminal charges against a Chinese dissident living in the US, accusing him of secretly working for China's Ministry of State Security and spying on pro-democracy activist groups, CBS News reported.
The CBS report states that Yuanjun Tang, who had previously protested against the Chinese Communist Party during the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations and later sought refuge in Taiwan and the US, is accused by prosecutors of agreeing to work for China's intelligence agency decades later. Court documents reveal that Tang's motivation was to facilitate his family's relocation to mainland China.
The report further reveals that Yuanjun Tang is charged with relaying details about events in New York intended to commemorate the Tiananmen Square massacre in 2021. Additionally, a year later, he allegedly provided the Chinese intelligence officer with information about the campaign team and fundraising efforts of a Congressional candidate who was also a Chinese dissident and human rights advocate.
According to court records, Tang also assisted the Chinese agent in monitoring a group chat among Chinese dissidents living in the United States. He faces three charges: acting as an agent of a foreign government, providing false statements to investigators, and another unspecified count.
Earlier this month, a jury in New York found a naturalized US citizen of Chinese descent, who led a pro-democracy organization, guilty of covertly collaborating with Chinese intelligence officers to monitor dissidents.
Chinese espionage in the United States has a complex and evolving history, marked by a series of high-profile cases and ongoing concerns about intelligence and cyber activities.
During the Cold War, early instances of Chinese espionage included efforts to infiltrate US scientific and military research. The 2010s brought increased scrutiny, highlighted by the indictment of former CIA officer Kevin Mallory in 2017, who was charged with spying for China. This case was also reported by US-based newspaper The Washington Post.
Current concerns involve technological theft, intellectual property theft, and political influence operations. The US government has responded with heightened counterintelligence measures to address these challenges.
