German Ex-EU Diplomat Suspected of Spying for China

By Staff, Agencies

German prosecutors are investigating a former senior EU diplomat who works for a lobbying firm on suspicion of spying for China, Der Spiegel reported on Wednesday.

Two other employees of the well-known lobbying firm are also under investigation, Spiegel reported. Two of the suspects passed on private and commercial information to China's ministry for state security while the third said he was ready to do the same, the German news outlet reported.

Spiegel said the former diplomat was from Germany but did not name him. Nor did it name the other suspects or the lobbying firm.

The German Federal Prosecutor's Office confirmed it is investigating three people suspected of working as secret agents. Investigators carried out searches of properties in Berlin, Brussels and the German regional states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, a spokesperson for the prosecutor's office said, according to German news agency DPA.

Spiegel said the former diplomat held senior positions in the European Commission and later worked for the European Union's External Action Service, its foreign policy arm. He served as an EU ambassador to multiple countries before ending his EU career in 2017 and joining the lobbying firm, which has advised well-known major German firms, according to Spiegel.