Singapore man admits to being spy for China in US

A Singaporean man has pleaded guilty to working as a foreign agent for China in the US, as diplomatic tensions between Washington and Beijing continue to escalate.

The plea comes as China ordered the closure of the US consulate in the south-western city of Chengdu on Friday. Souring relations The move is an escalation of a tit-for-tat exchange between the two countries after the US ordered China to close its consulate in Houston. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo labelled the consulate “a hub of spying and intellectual property theft.”

Tensions between the US and China have plummeted since 2018, which started with a trade war. It resulted in Washington and Beijing slapping tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of their export goods, after the Trump administration accused China of unfair trading practices. Negotiations between the two sides are ongoing.

Their relationship has soured in the last year with issues arising over technology, the US blaming the COVID-19 pandemic on China, and Beijing's clampdown on Hong Kong's autonomy.

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The US has also arrested four Chinese academics in recent weeks, charging them with lying on visa applications about their ties to the People's Liberation Army. Who is Yeo?

According to the US, Yeo was recruited by Chinese intelligence while working as an academic at the National University of Singapore.

He had researched and wrote about China's "Belt and Road" initiative to expand its global commercial networks.