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Chinese Spies Pay Off Charles R. Smith ITT Corp. has agreed to pay a $100 million fine for illegal exports of advanced night vision technology to China. The fine, part of a plea agreement reached with the Justice Department is one of the largest ever paid in a criminal case. ITT was accused of passing advanced night vision technology to Chinese engineers from 2000 to 2004. The technology is critical to U.S. warfighting capability, allowing soldiers to see in the dark. "ITT's exportation of this sensitive technology to China and other nations jeopardized our national security and the safety of our military men and women on the battlefield," said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein. Wainstein said the prosecution "addresses the violations of the past, ensures compliance in the future, and serves as a strong warning to others who might be tempted by the profits of such illegal exports." According to the charges, ITT officials shared the technology with Chinese engineers and then attempted to cover up their actions. ITT officials viewed the export control act covering weapons technology as a hindrance to doing business. The financial penalties include a $2 million criminal fine, a $50 million penalty, and the forfeiture of $28 million of profits gained in the illegal export. ITT will also pay a $20 million penalty to the Department of State. The successful prosecution of ITT joins the convictions of other U.S. defense companies. Both Hughes and Loral aerospace were convicted of passing advanced U.S. missile technology to the Chinese army.
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The ITT conviction followed the opening of jury selection in the prosecution of an accused Chinese army spy. According to the U.S. Justice Department, Chi Mak is a foreign agent who used his position as an engineer to steal military secrets for the Chinese Army. Mak, a naturalized American citizen, has been charged with conspiracy to export advanced military secrets to China. Mak could get more than 50 years in prison if convicted. Chi Mak was a top engineer at Power Paragon, a California-based subsidiary of L-3 Communications. Mak worked on advanced naval technologies, including a silent-running propulsion system that can make submarines virtually undetectable. According to the Justice Department, Mak has also worked for the Chinese military from 1983 until his arrest in 2005, stealing hundreds of secret documents for his masters in Beijing. The prosecution claims that Mak took documents from Power Paragon, copied them to computer disks and encrypted them with the help of his brother, Tai Mak, and his nephew, Billy Mak, before trying to pass them to the Chinese army. Tai Mak and his wife, Fuk Heung Li, were arrested in 2005 at Los Angeles International Airport as they prepared to travel to Hong Kong and China.
In their luggage were encrypted disks containing copies of documents on a submarine propulsion system. The prosecution is expected to demonstrate that the Chinese military has an extensive network of spies inside the United States. According to the FBI and the CIA, the Chinese army operates nearly 3,000 front companies inside the U.S. These companies engage in various forms of espionage, ranging from military to commercial spying. The effort to identify and evict these Chinese army fronts has been hindered by various officials inside both the Clinton and Bush administrations. The current U.S. laws require the White House to publish an annual list of known Chinese army companies operating inside the U.S. Instead, the U.S. State Department recently issued a waiver for Chinese army companies to continue operating inside America. The Bush administration imposed an import ban against known Chinese army companies that sent advanced nuclear and missile technology to Iran. In response, the State Department has issued a waiver allowing the companies to continue to import goods into the U.S. despite the sanctions. The waiver reportedly was given to China by State Department officials who contend that punishing the Chinese army companies would lead to Beijing backing out of the North Korea talks on nuclear weapons. However, all is not going well for China supporters inside Washington. Marine general James Cartwright, commander of STRATCOM (Strategic Command) wants Congress to pass laws allowing the U.S. military to locate, and go after, those who are waging a Cyber War against America. STRATCOM is in charge of American strategic weapons, including warfare via the Internet. STRATCOM is also responsible for keeping an eye on the strategic weapons of other nations. It is known that the Chinese government makes use of civilian hackers and freelance mercenaries, for Cyber warfare attacks. Chinese hackers have been identified as the source of attacks on American military bases, military computer systems and even individual military personnel. STRATCOM officials have given some classified briefings to Congress, detailing American vulnerabilities, and possible countermeasures that could be undertaken. STRATCOM is not the only military agency to note the growing Chinese threat. The U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) recently issued a report detailing the growth of the Chinese Navy into a "blue water" fleet to challenge the U.S. Navy. "Over the past decade, the Chinese Navy has embarked on a modernization program with the goal of being the pre-eminent regional power in East Asia. By acquiring some of the world's most impressive naval technologies from abroad while simultaneously building advanced indigenous submarines, combatants, and naval aircraft, China is positioning itself to play a growing role in regional and trans-regional affairs," states the ONI report. "Preparation for the maritime battlefield has been intensified and improved while the integrated combat capabilities are being enhanced to conduct offshore campaigns. The capability of nuclear counter-attacks has also been enhanced," warned the ONI report. "The PLA navy has also sped up the process of updating its weaponry and equipment with priority given to the development of new combat ships as well as various kinds of special purpose aircraft and relevant equipment. At the same time, the weaponry is increasingly informationalized and long-range precision strike capability raised," states the ONI report. "The (PLA) navy aims at gradual extension of the strategic depth for offshore defensive operations and enhancing its capabilities in integrated maritime operations and nuclear counterattacks. The navy is working to build itself into a modern maritime force of operation consisting of combined arms with both nuclear and conventional means of operations," noted the ONI report.
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