Washington, 4 Aug, 2023 (GNP): Two sailors of the US Navy have been taken into custody on allegations of sharing national security secrets with China, US officials stated on Thursday.
The officials said that Petty Officer Wenheng Zhao, 26, was charged with conspiracy and bribery for allegedly accepting around $15,000 in barter for photographs and video clips containing sensitive U.S. military information.
However, U.S. Navy sailor, Jinchao Wei, whose age has not been revealed, was accused of sending national defense details to China in return for thousands of dollars.
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Assistant Attorney General Matt Olsen informed reporters in San Diego, “sensitive military info ended up in the hands of the People’s Republic of China,” due to the illegal practices of the two US Navy sailors.
As per US officials, Zhao has been charged for sharing plans of U.S military exercises in the Indo-Pacific region with his Chinese counterpart, specifically electrical diagrams and blueprints for a radar system on a U.S military base in Okinawa, Japan, and security information for U.S. naval services in Ventura County and San Clemente Island outside Los Angeles.
Moreover, Wei has been held responsible for revealing information regarding the USS Essex, an amphibious assault ship where he performed his duties, besides other American warships, together with dozens of technical manuals laying out the Essex’s weapons, power structure, and operations.
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The US officials highly condemned China’s spying operation at a press conference on Thursday.
The Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Stacey Moy expressed, “There is no bigger, multigenerational threat to the United States than China.” She further said, “Beijing will stop at nothing to attack the United States in its strategic plan to become the world’s sole superpower.”
The Chinese Embassy in Washington has not responded to any of these allegations yet.
