Former defence personnel and Australian public servants face decades behind bars if they share the country’s classified secrets.
The Safeguarding Australia’s Military Secrets Bill comes as several cases of Beijing-linked espionage emerge across Western countries.
On Sept. 14, federal Labor Defence Minister Richard Marles introduced laws that will make it a requirement for former military personnel to obtain approval before they can work for a foreign military or government service.
Failure to receive approval could lead to 20 years imprisonment, while those who receive permission but do not follow the government’s requirements could face five years behind bars.
Penalties of up to 20 years could also be slapped on those who provide tactical or weapons training.
“The importance of protecting our nation’s secrets and sensitive information cannot be overstated,” Mr. Marles told Parliament.
“The protection of our nation’s secrets and sensitive information is central to preserving Australia’s national security and to keeping Australians safe.”
The defence minister said the laws were modelled on those introduced by the United States and were a step towards protecting technology exchange (including nuclear submarine propulsion technology) between AUKUS partners, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Special exceptions to the laws will be made for other Five Eyes nations New Zealand and Canada, as well as humanitarian work for organisations like the United Nations or Red Cross.
Citizens Accused of Building Beijing’s Military Intelligence
The move comes as Western governments prosecute citizens who have been accused of spying or espionage work for Beijing.In the UK, a political researcher for a sitting member of the UK Parliament was arrested on suspicions of “spying for China” and feeding information to Beijing.
The suspect, arrested and released on bail in March, is a male Briton in his late 20s who studied and worked in China, according to The Times newspaper.
The report said the man had high-level security clearance and had helped shape the UK’s China policy.
Security officials suspect the Chinese regime may have recruited the man as a sleeper agent when he was in China and deliberately sent him back to the UK to infiltrate the circle of politicians who are critical of the regime, the report stated.
Meanwhile, 55-year-old Australian man Alexander Csergo is facing charges of foreign interference, and gathering a “shopping list” of information for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
He transacted with two spies called “Ken” and “Evelyn,” who are both alleged to work for a foreign spy agency.
While earlier this year, Australian authorities agreed to extradite former U.S. military pilot Daniel Duggan who was accused of receiving $100,000 to teach Chinese aviators how to take-off and land on aircraft carriers.
Mr. Duggan, 54, is alleged to have received 12 payments from a Chinese-based business responsible for “acquired military equipment and technical data for the PRC government and military,” according to an unsealed indictment filed in the U.S. District of Columbia.
Eight of the 12 payments, each for $9,900, or $9,500, were cited for “personal development training.” The payments, totaling between $116,250 and $116,400, were made between Jan. 11, 2011, and July 6, 2012.
Duggan, who renounced his U.S. citizenship in 2012, was arrested on Oct. 21 in Australia’s New South Wales at the request of the FBI.
