Reuters - Thomson Reuters SYDNEY (Reuters) - China is conducting extensive espionage against Australia, Australia's most senior defense department official said on Friday, in a rare public accusation against its largest trading partner. Chinese spying on Australia has been the subject of much speculation by analysts but senior government officials have largely steered clear of making public complaints. "It is no secret that China is very active in intelligence activities directed against us. It is more than cyber," Dennis Richardson, secretary of the Defense Department, said in a speech in Canberra. Questions about China's involvement in Australia arose in 2015, with the lease of a commercial and military port in the northern city of Darwin to a Chinese firm said to have close ties to China's military. The deal sparked a backlash over the security implications and drew a rebuke from U.S. government officials. Australia has blocked several notable infrastructure bids made by Chinese compan
↧