MI5 Warns British MPs About Increasing China's Spy Activities

JAKARTA - The UK's domestic intelligence agency MI5 warned lawmakers of the country regarding increased activity of Chinese spy agents gathering information and influencing political activity, a recent warning about Beijing's alleged spy in parliament.

Members of parliament were told that the Bamboo Curtain country's spies targeted them disguised themselves as headhunters or companies to make contact, with two people contacting via LinkedIn to "reach on a large scale on behalf of" the Chinese government.

Politicians in the lower and upper house of parliament said MI5 had declared China's Ministry of State Security "actively reach individuals in our community."

UK Security Secretary Dan Jarvis told parliament the warning revealed Beijing's "screened and planned efforts" to interfere in British politics and said the government would launch a counter-spionage plan to address the threat.

"MI5 has stated that this activity was carried out by a group of Chinese intelligence officers, who often disguise themselves through the use of an external undercover company or headhunter," he said, quoted by the Daily Sabah on November 19.

In recent years, Britain and China have accused each other of alleged spying. The Chinese Embassy in London said the latest allegations were "pure fabrication and slanderous."

"We strongly condemn the British side's despicable actions and have raised firm objections to them," an embassy spokesman said in a statement.

"We urge the British to immediately stop the fake accusations and this fabricated self- justification, and stop going further in the wrong direction in damaging China-UK relations," he continued.

The new warning comes after Britain's prosecutor canceled the case in September against two British men charged with spying on lawmakers for China, saying the UK Government did not provide clear evidence to show Beijing was a threat to its national security.

The failure of this case sparked accusations from opposition politicians, Prime Minister Keir Starmer prioritized better relations with Beijing than national security. The government denies it.

Hal ini juga terjadi hanya beberapa minggu sebelum pemerintah harus memutuskan apakah akan menyetujui embassis China baru yang besar di London yang menurut para kritik akan menimbulkan risiko keamanan.

In October, MI5 said Chinese spies made fake job advertisements to try to lure British professionals into submitting information, with thousands of suspicious posts placed on online recruitment platforms.

In his annual speech last month, MI5 Director Ken McCallum said Chinese spies pose a national security threat every day and his service has "interferred operationally" to China just a week earlier.

Menteri Jarvis mengatakan kepada parlemen, menteri luar negeri telah berbicara dengan mitranya dari China pada 6 November dan mengungkapkan, segala aktivitas yang berusaha merusak keamanan nasional Inggris tidak akan ditoleran.

He said Britain would spend 170 million to improve encryption technology used by civil servants to protect sensitive jobs, in response to threats from China and other parties.

There will also be safety guidelines for election candidates and plans to tighten regulations on political donations, while Chinese-made surveillance equipment has been removed from sensitive sites.

MPs must be careful because "Chigko has a low threshold for what information is considered valuable", Minister Jarvis said, adding China also intervened in academic activities at British universities.

He said ministers would hold closed events with university leaders to highlight the risks of foreign interference.