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German MEP to stand despite spying scandal
German MEP Maximilian Krah, who is leading the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party into the European elections, said on Tuesday he would not withdraw his candidacy after a spying scandal involving one of his aides.
© Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty Images
Mundo Alemanha
"If anyone believes that this is the end of my candidacy, I regret to disappoint them," the MEP told reporters.
"I will not do penance for the alleged misconduct of an employee. I am and will remain the top candidate," Krah stressed.
The MEP also assured that he had offered to help the German authorities in the espionage case involving his aide and China.
AfD co-leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla said that Krah had also decided "not to participate in the campaign launch in the city of Donaueschingen (Baden-Württemberg state) next weekend, so as not to harm the campaign or the party's reputation".
"Any attempt by foreign states to commit espionage or to try to buy opinions or positions must be clarified and prevented with all severity," the two leaders stressed in a brief statement, alluding to the allegation that Krah had received payments from Russia in exchange for spreading pro-Kremlin positions.
Krah's aide, Jian Guo, 43, was arrested on Monday in the city of Dresden, according to the German Public Prosecutor's Office.
Guo, who had been an aide to the German MEP since 2019, is accused of working for the Chinese intelligence services and of having repeatedly transmitted information on negotiations and decisions of the European Parliament. German federal prosecutors allege that the aide also spied on Chinese dissidents in Germany.
According to the German television channel ARD, the parliamentary aide had offered himself as an informant to the German authorities several years ago, who from the outset suspected that he was a double agent.
The European Parliament (EP) announced that Jian Guo had been suspended and Krah said that if the accusations are true, this will result in the immediate termination of the employment relationship.
The news of Jian Guo's arrest was released a day after three Germans were arrested, in a separate case, on suspicion of spying for China and organising the transfer of information on technology with potential military use.
German police also arrested three people on Monday on suspicion of working with the Chinese secret services and providing them with data on military technology, the German federal prosecutor's office reported.
According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the information provided to the Chinese side would be on modern components that can be used in engines for warships. The charges against the trio are espionage for a foreign power and violation of the export law.
Read Also: Sweden accuses Russia of espionage with "ghost fleet" of oil tankers (Portuguese version)
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