In China, an American has been sentenced to life imprisonment for espionage. The court in the city of Suzhou did not give details of the allegation. China only tightened its anti-espionage law in April.
Life imprisonment: Such high penalties are rare for foreign nationals in China. A US citizen with permanent residence in Hong Kong has now been convicted of espionage. The American’s assets were also confiscated. It was the equivalent of around 66,000 euros.
The 78-year-old was arrested by counterintelligence officers in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou in April 2021. This was announced by the court, according to Chinese online media. Details of the espionage allegations were not disclosed.
Hong Kong’s Security Minister Chris Tang announced the verdict. The convicted US citizen was also deprived of his assets.
Relations with the USA are at a low point
Relations between China and the United States are currently the most tense in decades. The trade war between the world’s two largest economies, the dispute over the democratically governed island of Taiwan to which China is claiming, human rights violations by China and mutual allegations of espionage are straining the relationship between the two countries.
China only tightened its anti-espionage law in April. Not only state secrets, but also vaguely defined “national interests” are to be protected accordingly. Several foreigners have already been arrested in China on charges of espionage, including a senior executive at a Japanese pharmaceutical company in March. Trials following such allegations usually take place behind closed doors.