50 Chinese 'spy students' left UK after Britain tightened its policies: UK intel chief

Nearly two years after Britain tightened its rules for foreign students, the head of the FBI and the leader of Britain’s domestic intelligence agency, in a rare revelation, said at least 50 Chinese students left the country, who were allegedly part of the People's Liberation Army.

In a speech at MI5 - UK's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency - Ken McCallum, director-general of the British spy agency, said the students who left the country indulged in espionage activities and warned that spying from the Chinese government could increase. As per McCallum, the Chinese Communist Party has been heavily targeting industrial secrets and intellectual property across the West.

He revealed that the Chinese spy network was especially targetting institutions linked to the Western allies and added a reform by the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) helped the country to identify those who left the country and have links with the Chinese army. “This might feel abstract. But it’s real and it’s pressing. We need to talk about it. We need to act," McCallum said.

Notably, the scheme was launched by the UK government with the aim to control Chinese immigrants who want to enter into research on military technology or other subjects deemed to be sensitive. According to the top intelligence officer, at least 15,000 students are currently pursuing higher degrees in the United Kingdom with some of them engaged with universities, military and hi-tech businesses and related organisations. 

Meanwhile, speaking at the event, US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray, affirmed that the agency is constantly monitoring the unethical activities of Chinese nationals and added such elements as the biggest long-term threat to the country's economic and national security.

"We consistently see that it’s the Chinese government that poses the biggest long-term threat to our economic and national security, and by ‘our,’ I mean both of our nations, along with our allies in Europe and elsewhere," Wray said.

China refutes British spy chief's allegations

Notably, ever since the death of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019, spy agencies based in the UK and the US have reportedly switched their target from Islamist terrorism to hostile state activity sponsored by China and Russia. On several occasions, both agencies raised alarm about how Chinese and Russian spy agencies are targetting government computers and other electronic devices to dig out crucial information.

However, when the news agency The Associated Press contacted the Chinese embassy in Washington for comments on the allegations levelled by the US and UK spy agencies, Chinese embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu rejected the claim and said, "China firmly opposes and combats all forms of cyber attacks and calling the accusations groundless. We will never encourage, support or condone cyber attacks."