On April 29, German prosecutors charged Maximilian Krah, a former assistant to a far-right German politician and Member of the European Parliament (MEP), with espionage for China’s intelligence service. Prosecutors from Karlsruhe revealed that Krah, along with his accomplice, had repeatedly passed on sensitive information about European Parliament negotiations and decisions to Chinese intelligence, while also spying on Chinese dissidents in Germany.
Krah, who was the lead candidate for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in last year’s European Parliament elections, has been involved in various scandals. AfD was expelled from the right-wing Identity and Democracy group in the European Parliament after Krah made controversial comments defending members of the Nazi SS in an interview with Italian media. Following the incident, AfD removed him from their European Parliament delegation.
Krah’s former assistant, Đian G., a German citizen, has been working for Chinese intelligence since 2002. He was arrested in Dresden in April 2024 on charges of severe espionage. It is reported that Đian G. received over 500 documents, including some that the European Parliament classified as particularly sensitive.
German authorities raided the offices of Đian G. and Krah at the European Parliament in Brussels shortly after the arrest. In late September, German police arrested a Chinese woman working for a logistics supplier at Leipzig/Halle Airport. She allegedly passed information on flights, cargo, and passengers to Đian G., mainly concerning military shipments and individuals linked to a German defense company. The woman is also suspected of espionage on behalf of China.
