Three Germans are said to have passed on details of military technology to China. This shows how vulnerable German security systems are.
Imitator! Whether it's the Eiffel Tower, Heidelberg Castle or military technology. China copies what seems useful Photo: imago
In Germany there is a lot of espionage. Last week, two suspected spies and saboteurs were captured in Bayreuth and may have been planning arson attacks on military installations on behalf of a Russian secret service. On Monday the Federal Prosecutor's Office announced the next case.
This time China has Germany in its sights. “The defendants are strongly suspected of having worked for a Chinese secret service from a time that cannot be precisely determined before June 2022,” the federal attorney general stated. The focus is especially on Ina and Herwig F.
They've had a great time on the Internet so far. The couple announced that their company had been developing “innovation projects” with “optimal marketing opportunities” for 30 years. More than 300 inventions and 150 patents have been developed, for example for blinds motors and electric scooters. In addition to offices in Düsseldorf and London, they also have one in Shanghai, with connections “to the intellectual resources of the emerging metropolis of millions” and to “numerous business connections” in the Asian market.
But since Monday that is over. Early in the morning, the federal prosecutor's office had Ina and Herwig F. arrested in Düsseldorf, as well as a certain Bad Homburger who was supposed to look after the investors, Thomas R. The accusation: activity of secret service agents.
Expect more distance
The three not only worked for their company out of self-interest, but also as spies for China. A serious accusation that became known just a few days after Chancellor Olaf Scholz returned from a visit to China. And at a time when the federal government is trying to find a balance between distance and cooperation with its China strategy. It was not clear on Monday whether the Chancellor had been informed about the case before or during his trip.
The arrests are now likely to alienate the federal government. According to the Federal Prosecutor's Office, Thomas R. would be in contact with the Chinese secret service MSS from June 2022 at the latest. An MSS agent requested and received information from the 59-year-old man about technologies that could be used for military purposes.
Specifically, the MSS commissioned Thomas R. to study the state of the art of machine parts that could also be used to drive combat ship engines. The study was subsequently carried out by the company of Herwig F. and Ina F. and, according to the Federal Prosecutor's Office, paid for by the Chinese authorities.
The accusation is that the company also served as a cover for contacting German scientists. A cooperation agreement has also been signed with a university and, according to taz, with an East German university.
A comprehensive business
More recently, the trio is said to have been in negotiations over new research projects that China could have used for maritime combat technology. The company, commissioned and paid for by the MSS, also purchased a special laser and exported it without authorization, even though it was subject to the so-called EU dual-use regulation and should not have been exported in that way.
According to Thomas Haldenwang, president of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, his office had been monitoring the three for a long time. The case is also an investigative success for his company, which has “clear relevance.” Haldenwang again warned that China also carries out economic espionage and proliferation in Germany, that is, the export of goods whose export is not permitted. The current case is “part of a comprehensive agreement.”
Iran, North Korea and Russia are also actively involved in these fields, Haldenwang says. Countries are acting with a “high level of energy” and are using “all means”, from espionage to cyberattacks and disinformation.
“Germany is poorly prepared and very vulnerable to hybrid attacks”
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) also describes the arrests as a great success for the security authorities. “We are alert to the significant danger posed by Chinese espionage in business, industry and science,” said Ella Faeser. Clear warnings led to increased protective measures. The minister described the “affected area of innovative technologies for military use” as especially sensitive.
Change through trade? Naive!
However, this is not enough for CDU foreign policy expert Roderich Kiesewetter. He attests that China has an easy game in this country. “Germany is poorly armed and very vulnerable to hybrid attacks, including through intelligence operations,” Kiesewetter told the taz.
The services lack legal authority or financial and human resources in the field of counterintelligence. “Naive”: this is how Kiesewetter sees the way politics, business and science treat China. Kiesewetter considers the “change through trade” narrative, with which Chancellor Scholz also toured China, accompanied by a business delegation, to be at least questionable.
There seems to be a consensus that espionage is a serious security problem. But: “Unfortunately, many people in politics, business and science still lack the necessary awareness of the dangers posed by China and other authoritarian states,” says Konstantin von Notz, chairman of the Parliamentary Control Committee.
And this despite the fact that the federal government has agreed, in both the China strategy and the national security strategy, to reduce dependence on authoritarian states. This mainly affects technology companies, including components from Chinese companies that are used for telecommunications.