Beijing says Australians are spying on China as Canberra investigates P.R.C. influence allegations

Politics & Current Affairs

Beijing is fighting back against Australia, after the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) conducted an unprecedented raid of the house of a Labor Party politician last week. As part of a state-backed campaign, the Global Times said it had evidence of an Australian spy โ€” caught "red-handed" with a map, compass, and cash โ€” in Shanghai.

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The China Project illustration by Derek Zheng

The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) conducted an unprecedented raid of the house of a Labor Party politician, Shaoquett Moselmane, last week on Friday. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, it was โ€œsearching for evidence to support allegations of a Chinese government plot unfolding on Australian soil.โ€

If sufficient evidence is found, โ€œthe inquiry could ultimately result in an Australian and world first: a prosecution for foreign interference offenses arising from an alleged covert Chinese Communist Party plot to influence a serving politician.โ€

Beijing seems ready to fight back.ย Nationalist rag the Global Times saysย that โ€œa Chinese law-enforcement agencyโ€ฆarrested agents who work for Australian security intelligence agencies.โ€ The iron-clad evidence of their espionage activities, according to the Global Timesโ€™ โ€œsource,โ€ is this:

The Australian spies caught red-handed also had a compass, a USB flash disk, a notebook, a mask, gloves, and a map of Shanghai. On the notebook, there was some English handwriting about addresses, which are relevant to their operations.

The report is part of a government campaign. Although the Global Times is not an official mouthpiece, it often signals Communist Party intentions. To confirm this, a Global Times reporter asked a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson at a briefing todayย about the report. He replied, โ€œI am afraid that what is revealed by the Global Times this time is just the โ€˜tip of the iceberg.โ€™โ€

Context

Australia has been on high alert about foreign influence from Beijing since mid-2017, when media investigations revealedย avenues of Communist Party influence, often through the United Front Work Department, in both the Labor and Liberal parties. Significant events since then include:

The newest development comes amid a historic lowย in Australia-China relations, as Beijing has punishedย Canberra repeatedlyย for Prime Minister Scott Morrisonโ€™s advocating for an international inquiry into the origins of COVID-19 in China.