By Blaise GAUQUELIN VIENNA, June 26, 2024 (AFP) – Austria’s highly controversial former foreign minister Karin Kneissl — who now lives in Russia — told AFP she feels slandered as Vienna reels from an unfolding Russian spying scandal. A pariah in her home country after dancing with Russian President Vladimir Putin at her wedding, Kneissl claims she had no choice but to flee Austria and shelter in Russia. Now she denies any involvement in the […]
Tag: espionage
N. Korea accuses Washington, Seoul of sending spy planes and boats
SEOUL, May 26, 2024 (AFP) – North Korea on Sunday accused the United States and South Korea of conducting more aerial espionage around the peninsula, warning it would take “immediate action” if its sovereignty was breached. America has deployed dozens of military planes “in air espionage against the DPRK from May 13 to 24”, the North’s vice defence minister Kim Kang Il said in a statement, referring to his country by its official name. The […]
Former UK marine in Hong Kong spy case found dead: police
LONDON, May 21, 2024 (AFP) – A former member of the UK’s Royal Marines, bailed by a court last week over allegations of assisting Hong Kong’s intelligence services in a Chinese-linked espionage case, has been found dead, British police said Tuesday. Matthew Trickett, 37, was found dead in a park in Maidenhead, west of London, on Sunday following a report by a member of the public, Thames Valley Police said. Trickett had more recently […]
Germany and Britain move in on suspected Chinese spies
By Femke COLBORNE with Phil HAZLEWOOD in London BERLIN, April 22, 2024 (AFP) – Germany and Britain on Monday both swooped on suspected spies accused of passing on secret information to China, as concern deepens in the West over aggressive Chinese espionage. In Germany, investigators arrested three German nationals in the west of the country suspected of sharing information on maritime technology, prosecutors said in a statement. The trio, named as Herwig F., Ina F. […]
What we know about leaked German army audio recording
By Femke COLBORNE BERLIN, March 4, 2024 (AFP) – A leaked audio recording of senior German army officers discussing the war in Ukraine has caused a diplomatic firestorm and raised serious questions about the security of German military communications. Russia declared the recording proves direct involvement of Western countries in the conflict in Ukraine. Here is what we know about the intercept. – What was leaked? – On March 1, the head of Russia’s state-backed […]
Canadian claims he was used by Ottawa for intelligence gathering in China
OTTAWA, Nov 20, 2023 (AFP) – A Sino-Canadian row reared its head on Monday after one of two Canadians jailed by China for nearly three years claimed he was unwittingly used for intelligence gathering and is seeking compensation from Ottawa. Beijing’s 2018 to 2021 detentions of Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig had plunged bilateral relations into a deep freeze. Spavor reportedly now blames Kovrig, with whom he had provided information on North Korea, unaware […]
Chinese firm sold satellites for intelligence to Russia’s Wagner: contract
PARIS, Oct 5, 2023 (AFP) – Russian mercenary group Wagner in 2022 signed a contract with a Chinese firm to acquire two satellites and use their images, aiding its intelligence work as the organisation sought to push Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to a document seen by AFP. The contract was signed in November 2022, over half a year into Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in which the Wagner group under its founder Yevgeny Prigozhin was […]
UK to charge five Bulgarians with spying for Russia
LONDON, Sept 21, 2023 (AFP) – Five Bulgarian nationals suspected of spying for Russia will be charged with conspiracy to conduct espionage, UK prosecutors said Thursday. Three men and two women “will be charged with conspiring to collect information intended to be directly or indirectly useful to an enemy for a purpose prejudicial to the safety and interest of the state”, the Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement. The charges relate to alleged offences […]
Two US Navy men arrested on China spying charges
LOS ANGELES, Aug 3, 2023 (AFP) – Two serving members of the US Navy have been arrested on suspicion of spying for China, the Department of Justice said Thursday. The men are suspecting of selling secret information to Beijing that included manuals for warships and their weapons systems, as well as blueprints for a radar system and plans for a huge US military exercise. “These arrests are a reminder of the relentless, aggressive efforts of […]
Possible Chinese malware in US systems a ‘ticking time bomb’: report
WASHINGTON, July 29, 2023 (AFP) – The Biden administration believes China has implanted malware in key US power and communications networks in a “ticking time bomb” that could disrupt the military in event of a conflict, The New York Times reported Saturday. The Times, quoting US military, intelligence and security officials, said the malware potentially gave China’s People’s Liberation Army the ability to disrupt US military operations if Beijing were to move against Taiwan at […]
Biden equates China’s Xi with ‘dictators’ at donor reception
SAN FRANCISCO, June 21, 2023 (AFP) — US President Joe Biden equated his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping with “dictators” on Tuesday as he addressed a Democratic Party donors reception in the presence of journalists. Speaking at a campaign fundraiser in northern California, Biden said Xi had been angered over an incident in February when a Chinese balloon — which Washington says was used for spying — flew over the United States before being shot down […]
Kim inspects North Korea’s first spy satellite: state media
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) – Leader Kim Jong Un has inspected North Korea’s first military spy satellite and gave the go-ahead for its “future action plan,” state media said Wednesday. Kim met with the Non-permanent Satellite Launch Preparatory Committee on Tuesday before viewing the satellite, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. A month ago, Kim said construction of the satellite was completed and gave the green light for its launch. That report on April […]





