TAIWANESE MILITARY SHAKEN BY SECOND SPY SCANDAL IN JUST OVER A YEAR.

Taiwan’s military was forced to contend once again with allegations of a spy for mainland China in their midst, amid reports at the end of February of an Air Force captain taken into custody on suspicion of handing over classified information to China, following as they do the highly publicized arrest of Army General Lo Hsien-che on espionage charges in early 2011 and his subsequent confession. According to Next Magazine, a Chinese language publication, the suspect’s last name is Chiang and he was assigned to a regional operations control center (ROCC) in northern Taiwan. It alleged Chiang’s uncle, having business enterprises on the mainland, was involved in turning over secret information pertaining to the Taiwanese early warning radar system and the E-2T/E-2K Hawkeye surveillance aircraft, among other classified materials. Furthermore, Chiang stands accused of disclosing data on Taiwan’s air defense command and control workings, designated 10-1E “Strong Net”, to China. Four ROCCs had been set up across the country in order to augment the central air warning and air combat system in place at the Joint Air Operations Center located on southern Taipei’s Toad Mountain. However, the account of the Taipei Times regarding the current affair asserted that Chiang actually was not attached to a ROCC, but rather served at a station in northern Taipei conducting comparable activities.

Chiang’s rank did not afford him the security clearance necessary for entrée to the most secret documents. Nevertheless, Taiwan Ministry of National Defense spokesman David Lo revealed that steps had been undertaken to address the security leak and protect the country from any potential risks. He also divulged that counterintelligence procedures had been intensified due to the General Lo episode, possibly playing a role in uncovering Chiang’s questionable actions. As previously mentioned, the general admitted being a Chinese agent and consequently was sentenced to life imprisonment. His prison term already has commenced for espionage dating as far back as 2004, and believed related to Taiwanese communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations, longtime focus of Chinese spies.