Washington (AFP) – The United States secretly expelled two Chinese embassy officials in September after they drove onto a sensitive military base in Virginia, The New York Times reported Sunday.
The newspaper, which cited people with knowledge of the episode, said it appeared to be the first time in more than 30 years that the US has expelled Chinese diplomats on suspicion of espionage.
At least one of the diplomats was believed to be an intelligence officer operating under cover, the Times said.
The Times said the diplomats, accompanied by their wives, drove up to the checkpoint at the entrance to a sensitive installation near Norfolk, Virginia that includes special operations forces.
Trump energy czar says Iran conflict gas spike is ‘temporary blip’ as drilling push ramps up
TSA callouts hit Houston, Atlanta, New Orleans hardest, 450 officers have quit nationwide
Chicago Democrat Suggests Woman Murdered by Illegal ‘Startled’ Her Killer, Shares Blame
Massive Explosion Rocks Texas Refinery, Triggers Shelter-in-Place
USC pulls plug on California gubernatorial debate after candidate race controversy
Trump admin rolls out ‘Product of USA’ campaign for American meat, poultry, and egg products
IL Dems decline to defend ‘no’ votes on Laken Riley Act after student’s killing tied to repeat offender
Jack Smith team secretly sought years of Kash Patel phone records, new docs show
CPAC tests Cornyn with offer of speaking slot
Pentagon leaders award 2 Purple Hearts to Old Dominion cadets who took down ISIS supporter
With Midterms and Trump’s Future on the Line, GOP Brags 7-1 Cash Advantage Over Debt-Saddled Democrats
Dem Candidates Keep Getting Weirder: ‘Moderate’ TX Dem Played M*********** Pervert Who Was Supposed to Be Cute in Bizarre Video
Kermit Gosnell, found guilty of murdering infants at Philadelphia abortion clinic, is dead at 85
Lawmakers’ airport perks in crosshairs as DHS shutdown snarls travelers, TSA
Afghanistan frees US citizen Dennis Coyle over a year after Taliban arrest
The guard saw that they didn’t have permission to enter and directed them to go through the gates, turn around and exit.
The Chinese officials continued onto the base, evading military personnel pursuing them until they were forced to stop by fire trucks blocking their path, according to the Times.
It said the officials said they didn’t understand the guard’s instructions and got lost.
Weeks after the incident, the State Department placed restrictions on the activities of Chinese diplomats, in what it said was a response to years-old Chinese regulations limiting the movements of US diplomats.
Story cited here.
