News

FBI interviewing Chinese visa holders suspected of hiding military ties, 3 arrested

WASHINGTON: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has interviewed visa holders in more than 25 US cities suspected of hiding their Chinese military memberships, the Justice Department said on Thursday (Jul 23).

It is part of what experts called the biggest known crackdown on the theft of US know-how in more than 40 years of Sino-US relations. The Justice Department announcement will likely fuel tensions between the world's two largest economies, that have grown since the Trump administration ordered China to shutter its consulate in Houston, Texas by Friday.

The administration has intensified charges that China uses cyber operations and espionage to steal US technological, military and other know-how in a strategy to supplant the United States as the world's leading financial and military power. Beijing denied the allegations.

The FBI recently has interviewed visa holders suspected of having undeclared Chinese military affiliations in more than 25 American cities, the Justice Department said.