Defector Confirms Chinese Army Spying on U.S.

Defector Confirms Chinese Army Spying on U.S.

Charles R. Smith
Tuesday, March 27, 2001

Armed with information from a high-ranking defector, President Bush is reported to be on the verge of shutting down Chinese military espionage in America. The defector, identified by the BBC as Lt. Col. Xu Junping, is said to be singing like a bird about Chinese army intelligence operations inside the United States.

According to Taiwanese news sources, Xu is a senior colonel in charge of North American affairs for the People's Liberation Army General Staff Department. Xu's reported expertise is arms control and U.S. military-to-military contacts.

Xu's information on Chinese army spy operation has led several high-ranking members of the Bush administration to press for the suspension of major military-to-military contacts with Beijing. Under the proposed ban, Chinese military officials will no longer be allowed the exclusive access to sensitive U.S. facilities that they previously enjoyed under the Clinton administration, which considered China a "strategic partner" in Asian military affairs.

Although not as dramatic as the expulsion of dozens of Russian spies, the move will cripple People's Liberation Army intelligence operations inside America. The Bush-led effort is expected to allow high-level Chinese army officers to attend only official military functions.

Why Did Clinton Abet Chinese Spying on U.S.?

The information obtained from Xu has led U.S. intelligence officials to question the previous free access given to Chinese army officers during the 1990s. The Clinton strategic partnership with the People's Liberation Army included military training, computers, encrypted communications equipment, satellites and exclusive access to U.S. military facilities inside America. Xu confirmed that Chinese army intelligence officers frequently abused civilian programs to mask their military and economic espionage.

According to documents previously obtained from the U.S. government using the Freedom of Information Act, China abused a civil air traffic control program to obtain important military information such as "Combat Readiness." The documents also show that the Chinese attempted to conceal the military background of the representatives.

For example, in 1993 a Chinese military delegation visited America under the Federal Aviation Administration civil exchange program using civilian titles. One FAA official noted that many of the Chinese delegation actually held rank in the People's Liberation Army.

The anonymous FAA official who attending the meeting wrote "military" next to the names of seven members of the 1993 "China Air Traffic Control" delegation in an apparent effort to track the Chinese army officers.

The 1993 FAA delegation list included "Mr. Kui Fulin," who toured Federal Aviation Administration headquarters in Washington, Andrews AFB in Maryland, and Boeing Corp. in Washington state. Mr. Kui Fulin was actually Gen. Kui Fulin, Chinese army deputy chief of the general staff. Fulin is known as the man who planned the brutal 1989 army attack on unarmed student demonstrations in Tiananmen Square.

The Chinese army access to the America continued throughout the Clinton years under the so-called Federal Aviation Administration civilian air program with exclusive tours backed by U.S. industry giants such as United Airlines and Lockheed Martin.

In May 1999 Chinese air force and navy officers visited Edwards Air Force Base for the Federal Aviation Administration civil program under a tour sponsored by Lockheed Martin. Edwards AFB is a test center for American military and NASA research aircraft, including the F-22, Joint Strike Fighter and space shuttle.

U.S. Air Force documents show that Sr. Col. Li Zhongli, Sr. Col. Wang Changzheng and Maj. Wang Shouxing gained entry to Edwards Air Force Base. The documents noted that the Chinese officers were given detailed information on military operations at Edwards AFB.

The Chinese air force officers were also given details on U.S. Air Force "Special Airspace" areas inside America that are used for military training, research and national security zones. The Chinese military officers were given the latest information on advanced "mobile radars," command and control systems, GPS navigation and "Surveillance Avionics" such as "Air to Air," "Air to Ground" and "Surface Area Movement" surveillance radars.

Chinese military officers were also given training on U.S. Air Force combat missions, including "bombing and strafing" and "combat readiness." The U.S. Air Force documents show Chinese Air Force officers were given a "simulated" F-16 training mission under the FAA civil program.

The training included a "two ship formation of F-16s from Luke AFB, Arizona" on a "bombing" and overflight mission in a training area, code-named "Baghdad," northwest of Prescott, Ariz. The simulated exercise also included "in-flight refueling" with a tanker aircraft under control of a U.S. Air Force AWACs plane.

Defense and State Department officials, backed by the espionage details provided by Xu, have reportedly recommended the new freeze in military exchanges amid heightened security concerns. The new concern in Washington is reflected in the recent decision by President Bush to order air strikes against a Chinese-built air defense system outside Baghdad.

The U.S. and U.K. air attacks were timed to strike when Chinese engineers were not working on the Iraqi fiber-optic command network, NATO code-named "Tiger Song." In the following war of words, Secretary of State Colin Powell reported conservations with Beijing clearly noted the U.N. embargo on weapons for Baghdad is still in effect. Powell stated that the public and private protests over Beijing's illegal supply of weaponry to Iraq would continue.

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