Chinese authorities say have detained a man accused of collecting state secrets for the UK’s MI6 intelligence agency.
China’s ministry of state security, the country’s intelligence agency, posted on its WeChat social media account that the individual is the citizen of a third nation.
The security agency has identified them only as Huang and said they were in charge of an overseas consulting agency.
They added that MI6 established an “intelligence cooperative relationship” with the person in 2015.
After that, M16 instructed Huang to enter China several times, and told him to use his public identity as a cover to collect China-related intelligence for British spying, the statement says.
It adds that MI6 also conducted professional intelligence training for Huang in Britain and other places, and provided special espionage equipment for intelligence cross-linking.
No further information on the intelligence gathered was given, nor did the ministry say when Huang had been detained or where they were being held.
“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 statement says.
The consulting agency has not been disclosed by the Chinese government.
What constitutes state secrets is not clearly defined under China’s opaque political and legal system, and many consulting and advisory firms have been investigated for obtaining data that would ordinarily be in the public record, particularly if they were shared with foreign entities.
Sky News has contacted the UK Foreign Office for comment on China’s allegations.
The claims by China are the latest in ongoing heated exchanges the two countries have traded over accusations of perceived spying.
The British government has said Chinese spies are targeting its officials in sensitive positions in politics, defence and business as part of an increasingly sophisticated spying operation to gain access to secrets.
A researcher in the UK parliament, who has links to several senior Tory MPs, was arrested on suspicion of being a spy for China in September 2023.
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China repeatedly condemned the assertions with a foreign ministry spokesperson saying they were “entirely groundless”.
“We urge the UK to stop spreading disinformation and stop political manipulation and malicious slander against China,” said foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning when queried at a press briefing.
China has been cracking down on perceived threats to its national security, revealing several cases of spying that it caught in recent years.
The government has also been warning its citizens in the country and abroad of the dangers of getting caught up in
espionage activities.
It has been encouraging people to join counter-espionage work that includes creating channels to report suspicious activity.
China has also unleashed a sweeping crackdown on foreign consultancy and due diligence firms over threats of revealing state secrets that has unnerved foreign companies operating in the country.