A Chinese Spy’s Extradition Is a ‘Rare Achievement’ in U.S. Counterespionage

A Chinese Spy’s Extradition Is a ‘Rare Achievement’ in U.S. Counterespionage
A new Japan Airlines Boeing 787 airplane with the GE Aviation GEnx engine on it, is shown following a delivery ceremony, March 26, 2012, Everett, Washington (AP photo by Ted S. Warren).

Editor’s Note: Every Wednesday, WPR’s newsletter and engagement editor, Benjamin Wilhelm, curates the top news and analysis from China written by the experts who follow it.

The United States Department of Justice announced the extradition of a Chinese intelligence official to the U.S. on economic espionage charges last Wednesday. It is the first time a Chinese government spy has been extradited to the U.S., according to The Washington Post.

Yanjun Xu, a deputy division director in the Ministry of State Security, China’s main spy agency, traveled to Belgium last spring, believing he was set to receive “proprietary information about jet fan blade designs” from a GE Aviation employee, according to The New York Times. Instead, he was met by Belgian agents and taken into custody, where he remained until Oct. 9, when he was transferred to the U.S. He appeared in federal court in Cincinnati the following day, and is charged with conspiring and attempting to commit economic espionage and steal trade secrets from American aviation and aerospace companies.

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