BEIJING: China on Wednesday (Apr 30) warned Germany against “smearing and vilifying” it after a former aide to a scandal-hit lawmaker from the far-right AfD party was charged over spying on behalf of Beijing.
The alleged spy, named by prosecutors as Jian G, is suspected of working with Chinese intelligence since 2002, including while he was an aide to the Alternative for Germany (AfD) MEP Maximilian Krah between 2019 and 2024.
“We urge the German side to stop smearing and vilifying China, and to take concrete actions to uphold the positive momentum in the development of bilateral relations,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.
“The so-called ‘China espionage threat’ is purely fabricated and malicious slander,” Guo said, adding China “has always upheld the principles of mutual respect”.
Krah was the party’s top candidate in last year’s European elections, but was excluded from its delegation after comments in which he minimised the crimes of the Nazis’ notorious SS.
Krah has since been welcomed back into the AfD fold and was elected as an MP in the German parliament in February’s snap general election.
Prosecutors said Jian G, a German national, used his job as Krah’s assistant to “gather information on the deliberations and decisions of the European parliament” for Chinese intelligence, including “procuring more than 500 documents, some of which had been classified as particularly sensitive”.
