The British parliamentary researcher arrested on suspicion of spying for China has insisted he is “completely innocent”.
The man said he had spent his career highlighting the “challenge and threats presented by the Chinese Communist Party”.
The arrest under the UK's Official Secrets Act led to the British prime minister confronting Chinese premier Li Qiang at the G20 summit in India on Sunday over “unacceptable” interference in democracy.
In a statement released through his lawyers, the researcher – who has not been officially named by police – said: “I feel forced to respond to the media accusations that I am a ‘Chinese spy’.
“It is wrong that I should be obliged to make any form of public comment on the misreporting that has taken place.
“However, given what has been reported, it is vital that it is known that I am completely innocent.
“I have spent my career to date trying to educate others about the challenge and threats presented by the Chinese Communist Party.
“To do what has been claimed against me in extravagant news reporting would be against everything I stand for.”
The Briton was arrested along with another man by officers on March 13th on suspicion of spying for Beijing, it was revealed by the Sunday Times.
One of the men, in his 30s, was detained in Oxfordshire on March 13th, while the other, in his 20s, was arrested in Edinburgh, police said.
Both were held on suspicion of offences under section one of the Official Secrets Act 1911, which punishes offences that are said to be “prejudicial to the safety or interests of the state”.
They have been bailed until early October.
UK business secretary Kemi Badenoch suggested that designating China a threat would “escalate things” with Beijing.
She told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “China is the second-largest economy in the world, it’s heavily integrated in our economy as it is with many of our allies… We’re taking the same approach that those countries are taking.”
Ms Badenoch said the UK was taking certain measures including making sure it has proper investment screening.
“We are taking action, what we’re not doing is giving endless running commentary on that because that would actually be more helpful to China than it would be to our security services,” she said.
China hit out at the arrests and claimed the situation was a “political farce”.
A spokesman for China’s embassy in London said: “The claim that China is suspected of ‘stealing British intelligence’ is completely fabricated and nothing but malicious slander.
“We firmly oppose it and urge relevant parties in the UK to stop their anti-China political manipulation and stop putting on such self-staged political farce.”
Former head of MI6 Alex Younger said co-operation with China is necessary but “just being nice to them doesn’t get you very far”.
He told the BBC: “China is a fact, it’s a huge country, we’ve got to find ways of engaging with it, and find ways of co-operating with it in important areas like climate change, and sometimes we have to be absolutely prepared to confront it when we believe that our security interests are threatened.”
