several U.S. citizens. On July 8, two other people allegedly involved in planning to Illustrator Artwork target Liu Jun were also charged. Liu Jun's case comes at a time of growing panic in the United States and Britain over an increase in Chinese espionage around the world. In an unprecedented joint public appearance at MI5 headquarters in London this week, both U.S. and U.K. security chiefs warned that China runs a sprawling spy network and hacking program larger than the other great powers combined.
The plans are seen as part of a broader, growing and multifaceted intelligence operation aimed at giving China an edge over the competition and suppressing and eliminating what is seen as a threat to Chinese Communist Party rule. These operations range from scams on computers to spying at the door. AP20323806462655 Photo Credit: AP / Dazhi Image FBI Director John Wray Former U.S. intelligence officials noted that those most likely to be targeted are those believed to be linked to what the Chinese government has identified as the "five poisons" that threaten it:
Tibetan and Uyghur separatists, Falun Gong, "Taiwan independence" activists and the Chinese democracy movement People, such as Liu Jun. Shockingly, these actions will only increase as U.S.-China relations deteriorate, and even Americans are not safe. For Liu Jun, who fled China via Hong Kong after the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests, being under surveillance is familiar. A previous operation ended when he unknowingly befriended a potential agent, he said. The man, a student, met Liu Jun through a