The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday confirmed that two military intelligence officers imprisoned in China for nearly a decade were released and returned to Taiwan in mid-October, adding that it was not related to any spy swap deal with China.
Presidential Office spokesman Charles Chen (陳以信) said the release was the result of mutual good will demonstrated by both sides of the Taiwan Strait at the landmark meeting between President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Singapore last month.
“President Ma is pleased to see Mr Chu [Chu Kung-hsun (朱恭訓)] and Mr Hsu [Hsu Chang-kuo (徐章國)] being able to unite with their families. He also hopes that both sides’ good-intentioned interactions can be continued and lead to more concrete results in the future,” Chen said.
Photo: Lo Tien-pin, Taipei Times
Chu, a former deputy department head of the Bureau of Military Intelligence (BMI), and Hsu, a former section chief of the bureau, were given a life sentence each for espionage while carrying out their official duties in China in 2006, MND spokesperson Major General David Lo (羅紹和) said.
After being imprisoned for more than nine years, they were released and returned to Taiwan on Oct. 13.
Lo said that after the two military intelligence officers were given a life sentence, the government had done everything possible to secure their release since 2008.
Lo also said the government expressed the highest respect and gratitude for the dedication of the two officers and the ordeals of their families and would do its utmost to take care of their interests and compensate them.
They are the highest-ranking Taiwanese agents ever to fall into Chinese hands, according to a local newspaper.
The Chinese-language China Times, which first reported news of the swap, also said Taiwan later agreed to release Li Zhihao (李志豪), a Chinese spy serving a life sentence in Taiwan, in late October, adding it was the first time that both sides of the Strait swapped spies, which it described as an “ice-breaking” move that was historically and politically significant.
However, Lo denied there was any spy swap deal.
“Their release and return to Taiwan in mid-October has nothing to do with a spy swap deal,” Lo said.
Lo said Li has served part of his term, and requested parole many times before it was granted in late October.
On whether China has requested the release of former Army Major General Lo Hsien-che (羅賢哲), believed to be the highest-ranking Taiwanese officer to be caught spying for China in nearly five decades, the ministry spokesman said he does not know anything about it and that Lo Hsien-che is still serving his life sentence.
He said there are no BMI officers still detained in China.
Of those that have been detained for assisting the work of BMI officers, he said that they were either being released through parole or after having completed their terms.
The government would do everything possible to secure the release of those who are still detained, he added.
Additional reporting by Stacy Hsu
The CIA has a message for Chinese government officials worried about their place in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) government: Come work with us. The agency released two Mandarin-language videos on social media on Thursday inviting disgruntled officials to contact the CIA. The recruitment videos posted on YouTube and X racked up more than 5 million views combined in their first day. The outreach comes as CIA Director John Ratcliffe has vowed to boost the agency’s use of intelligence from human sources and its focus on China, which has recently targeted US officials with its own espionage operations. The videos are “aimed at
STEADFAST FRIEND: The bills encourage increased Taiwan-US engagement and address China’s distortion of UN Resolution 2758 to isolate Taiwan internationally The Presidential Office yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for unanimously passing two Taiwan-related bills highlighting its solid support for Taiwan’s democracy and global participation, and for deepening bilateral relations. One of the bills, the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, requires the US Department of State to periodically review its guidelines for engagement with Taiwan, and report to the US Congress on the guidelines and plans to lift self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement. The other bill is the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, which clarifies that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the issue of the representation of Taiwan or its people in
US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo on Friday expressed concern over the rate at which China is diversifying its military exercises, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Saturday. “The rates of change on the depth and breadth of their exercises is the one non-linear effect that I’ve seen in the last year that wakes me up at night or keeps me up at night,” Paparo was quoted by FT as saying while attending the annual Sedona Forum at the McCain Institute in Arizona. Paparo also expressed concern over the speed with which China was expanding its military. While the US
SHIFT: Taiwan’s better-than-expected first-quarter GDP and signs of weakness in the US have driven global capital back to emerging markets, the central bank head said The central bank yesterday blamed market speculation for the steep rise in the local currency, and urged exporters and financial institutions to stay calm and stop panic sell-offs to avoid hurting their own profitability. The nation’s top monetary policymaker said that it would step in, if necessary, to maintain order and stability in the foreign exchange market. The remarks came as the NT dollar yesterday closed up NT$0.919 to NT$30.145 against the US dollar in Taipei trading, after rising as high as NT$29.59 in intraday trading. The local currency has surged 5.85 percent against the greenback over the past two sessions, central
RSS