The Chinese Ministry of State Security on Monday published a statement accusing the British Secret Intelligence Service MI6 of turning two unnamed Chinese state employees into spies for the British government.

According to the public statement, the two suspected spies were a couple both serving sensitive functions within the Chinese government. In 2015, one of the suspects, Mr. Wang, applied to study in the UK under an exchange program. His application was swiftly approved by the MI6, who allegedly flagged the confidential nature of Wang’s work capacity. Upon his arrival, Wang was contacted by MI6 personnel, who later revealed their true identities as members of the British intelligence service and induced Wang to work for the British government as a ‘consultant’. Wang allegedly agreed to this and subsequently underwent professional training with MI6, before he was sent back to China to collect important intelligence. MI6 also repeatedly asked Wang to recruit his wife, Ms. Zhou, who also worked at a core state organ, for the intelligence service. Zhou eventually agreed and began working for MI6. 

The Ministry said that the case is still under further investigation but did not say if the couple would be charged. Under Article 110 of the Chinese Criminal Law, a person convicted of espionage could be subject to life imprisonment.

The case was revealed just weeks after a statement from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) confirmed three individuals had been charged with offenses under the National Security Act for their alleged illegal activity in Hong Kong on May 14. One of the suspects on police bail was found dead in a park in the UK on May 20. Before that, a UK parliamentary researcher and another man were charged on April 22 with spying for China in the UK under the Official Secrets Act. In March, two other individuals were charged with espionage on behalf of China. It is believed by some that Beijing was making the present case public as a form of retaliation amid the tension in Anglo-China relations. That said, in January 2021, the Chinese Ministry of State Security published another case alleging MI6’s spying activity in China using individuals from third countries.

The MI6 was founded in 1909 to protect “the UK’s people, economy and interests from overseas threats.” British media BBC has contacted the UK authorities for a response to China’s statement but has not yet received a reply.