The spy chief said a team from an unidentified country had trained and recruited former Australian politicians.
Australia's spy chief is facing calls to name a former politician accused of “selling out” the country to foreign powers.
Mike Burgess, head of security at the Australian Security and Intelligence Organization (ASIO), said in his annual address on Wednesday night that an unidentified country's spy team had trained and recruited former Australian politicians.
“This politician has sold out his country, his party and his former colleagues to advance the interests of a foreign regime,” Mr Burgess said in a speech in the capital Canberra.
In his speech, Mr Burgess said foreign intelligence agencies, dubbed the A-Team, had made Australia a “priority target” for people who had access to “privileged information” through the use of social networking sites and the promise of financial rewards. said to be specifically targeted.
Mr Burgess added that the unidentified former politician was scouted “several years ago” and proposed a plan to bring the prime minister's family into his spying orbit, but the plan was never carried out.
He said police did not press charges because the person was no longer active.
In an unexpected revelation, former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's son Alex Turnbull said in an interview with news.com.au on Thursday that he was approached about an infrastructure project by a group of alleged Chinese agents around 2017. Told. His father held a government job.
He said the group was linked to a former NSW Labor MP, but did not name the person.
However, current and former opposition politicians have called for the former politicians' names to be released to avoid speculation.
Joe Hockey, a former Congressional treasurer and ambassador to the United States, echoed the call for the names of former politicians.
“Mr. Burgess has gone this far, so instead of slandering everyone who has served our country, he should be named,” The Hockey newspaper wrote in X.
ASIO's Mike Burgess publicly noted: @smh to an unknown politician as a foreign agent. Since Mr. Burgess has gone this far, he should be named instead of potentially slandering everyone who has served our country.
— Joe Hockey (@JoeHockey) February 28, 2024
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton told radio station 2GB: “The problem is that if he doesn't come forward, it casts a cloud over everyone else.”
Australia is currently a member of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing group, which includes the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand, and is a target of operatives from countries including China and Russia.
Foreign interference legislation was introduced in 2018 under former Prime Minister Turnbull's leadership, but the “primary purpose” of the measure was to expose Chinese activities.
A Chinese-Australian businessman was sentenced to one year and nine months in prison on Thursday for trying to win support from ministers, state broadcaster ABC reported. This is the first judgment based on the interference law.
