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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
World
Helen Davidson and Chi Hui Lin in Taipei

‘A race against time’: Taiwan strives to root out China’s spies

Soldiers march during the national day celebration in Taipei, Taiwan, in October 2021
There have been dozens of China espionage allegations tried in the courts in recent years that involve serving or retired soldiers in Taiwan accused of being spies. Photograph: Ann Wang/Reuters

In November, a Taiwan court heard accusations that two serving soldiers had accepted bribes from Chinese agents to record a video declaring their loyalty to China and their intention to defect in the event of a war. The video reportedly made its way into Chinese propaganda materials.

Weeks later, a conviction over a similar accusation was upheld against a retired army colonel. The colonel was found guilty of having accepted monthly payments totalling more than half a million Taiwan dollars (£12,500) to delay his retirement for years and serve as a spy. Local media reports said the colonel also posed for a photo holding a handwritten note, pledging his loyalty to Beijing’s cause of annexing Taiwan to the Chinese state.

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