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The
Chinese national surnamed Zeng, who had worked for a military
industrial group, was recruited by a CIA agent based in Italy,
the ministry said in a statement posted on its WeChat channel.
Zeng was sent to Italy by the military industrial group for
further studies and became acquainted with the CIA agent.
Through dinner parties, outings and trips to the opera, the two
developed a "close" relationship, with Zeng gradually becoming
"psychologically dependent" on the CIA agent, the ministry said.
After succeeding in "shaking" Zeng's political stance, the CIA
agent sought sensitive information about the Chinese military
from Zeng, according to the statement. It did not say when the
events took place.
The statement did not specify Zeng's gender but said the person
was born in 1971 and the alleged CIA agent was named "Seth".
The U.S. embassy in Beijing did not respond to a Reuters request
for comment.
U.S.-Sino relations have soured in recent years over a range of
issues including national security. Washington has accused
Beijing of espionage and cyberattacks, a charge that China has
rejected. China has also declared it is under threat from spies.
In the name of national security, China earlier this month
called on its citizens to participate in counter-espionage work,
following an expansion of its anti-spying law in July, alarming
the United States.
Zeng was found to have signed an espionage agreement with the
U.S. and had received training before returning to China, the
ministry said.
The alleged agent promised a huge amount of money and
immigration to the U.S. for Zeng's family in return for the
information, the ministry said.
After returning to China, Zeng had provided on numerous
occasions "core" intelligence, and had pocketed funds for the
efforts, it said.
Coercive measures, which normally means detention, have been
taken against Zeng, according to the statement.
(Reporting by Liz Lee, Ryan Woo and Shanghai newsroom; Editing
by Jamie Freed, Michael Perry and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
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