Dual defence betrayal: China reveals rare case of executive spying for 2 countries

An executive at a Chinese military trading company has been arrested for leaking sensitive defence information to intelligence agencies from two countries, Beijing’s top spy and anti-espionage agency revealed on Monday.

Public disclosures involving a Chinese national recruited simultaneously by multiple separate foreign intelligence agencies are extremely rare.

The ministry outlined the case of the suspect, identified only by his surname Zhang, in an article published on an official social media account.

The report did not name the two foreign countries involved, referring to them only as “Country A” and “Country B”. It also did not provide the name of the Chinese company or an exact timeline for the case.

According to the ministry, Zhang was fluent in an unknown number of foreign languages after spending years studying abroad. He returned to China and was highly regarded by his employer, frequently handling international business for the arms-trading firm.