Taiwan arrests general it suspects was spying for China

Taiwan has arrested a military general on suspicion of spying for China, in the most high-profile cross-Strait espionage case in decades.

Army Major General Lo Hsien-che was recruited by China while stationed in Thailand between 2002 and 2005 and was detained late last month, the ministry said in a statement. 

At the time of his arrest, the 51-year-old was head of the army's telecommunications and electronic information department, according to the statement.

It was not immediately clear how much harm Lo had caused Taiwan's military, but given the sensitive affairs he was in charge of, "it could be serious," a ministry official told Agence France-Presse. 

China claims sovereignty over democratically-governed Taiwan, which was taken over in 1949 by Nationalist (Kuomintang) forces who fled there from Communist forces when they took control of the mainland.

Taiwan's president Ma Ying-jeou, a member of the Kuomintang party, has sought to ease tensions with Beijing and expand economic ties since he was elected in 2008. The two sides have signed trade and transit deals, including increased access for investors. 

But the arrest has underscored the persistent distrust and military tensions between Taipei, Taiwan's capital, and Beijing. China has more than 1,000 missiles along its southeast coast aimed at Taiwan, and Beijing has not ruled out using force to bring the island under its control.

“Although the situation across the strait is easing, mainland China has never stopped spying on our military intelligence, and it’s being intensified,” the Taiwanese defense ministry said in its online statement. ”Our military staff and civilians should be more alert and improve our awareness of unexpected incidents.”

China was angered by the U.S. decision last year to sell weapons to Taiwan.

In 2008, China executed a businessman, Wo Wei-han, for spying for Taiwan. Last November, Taiwan arrested a military intelligence Col. Lo Chi-cheng on suspicion of spying for China.

“General Lo Hsien-che was posted overseas from 2002 to 2005, and the case of his spying for China began during the period. He was not posted in the United States as stated in some media reports. He was recruited by China in 2004,” Wang Ming-wo, deputy bureau chief of the Military Political Warfare Bureau, told a news briefing in Taipei.

“At the end of October last year, or 2010, the defense ministry and national security departments cooperated to obtain leads and held investigations. We requested the military court prosecutor to investigate on his spying actions.”