(ANSA-AFP) - BEIJING, APR 23 - Beijing said Tuesday the
arrest of an aide to a German far-right politician on suspicion
of spying was designed to "smear and suppress" China. "We are
aware of the reports and related hype," foreign ministry
spokesman Wang Wenbin said, adding: "The intention of this kind
of hype is very obvious... it is to smear and suppress China and
to destroy the atmosphere of cooperation between China and
Europe." The arrested man, named only as Jian G., stands accused
of sharing information about negotiations at European Parliament
with a Chinese intelligence service and of spying on Chinese
opposition figures in Germany, federal prosecutors said in a
statement. Asked about the arrest, Wang said: "In fact, it's
clear for everyone to see recently that the so-called Chinese
espionage threat theory is not a new thing in European public
opinion.
Germany's far-right AfD party said on Tuesday the arrest of
an aide working for its leading candidate in upcoming European
elections was "very disturbing". "As we have no further
information on the case, we must wait for further investigations
by federal prosecutors," said party spokesman Michael Pfalzgraf.
(ANSA-AFP).
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