AfD politician's aide suspected of spying for China
German authorities have arrested an aide to a high-ranking far-right member of the European Parliament on suspicion of spying for China.
The arrest is the latest in a number of recent detentions of suspected Chinese spies in Germany.
Maximilian Krah, a member of the European Parliament for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, confirmed that his aide, Jian Guo, had been arrested on Monday.
Prosecutors accuse Guo, a German national who had worked for Krah since his election to the European Union legislature in 2019, of "working as an agent for a foreign intelligence service".
Krah said he was "deeply shocked" by the arrest and that he had "full confidence" in Guo's innocence.
The AfD is Germany's largest far-right party and has been accused of having links to extremist groups.
The arrest of Guo comes amid growing concerns about Chinese espionage in Germany.
In recent months, German authorities have arrested several suspected Chinese spies, including a German scientist who was accused of stealing secrets from a German university.
The German government has accused China of conducting a "massive espionage campaign" against Germany, and has warned that it will take action to protect its security.
China has denied the allegations of espionage and has accused Germany of "political persecution".
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