Norway arrests Chinese woman over alleged satellite espionage plot
Norwegian authorities have arrested a Chinese woman on espionage allegations in connection with an alleged attempt to set up a receiver for sensitive satellite data.
Police said the operation was carried out on Thursday.
The country's domestic intelligence service said the suspect was detained after investigators linked the case to a Norwegian-registered company that was allegedly being used as a front for a Chinese state actor.
Officers also searched two premises as part of the inquiry.
One of the searches took place on an island in northern Norway that is home to Andoya Spaceport.
The other was carried out in Innlandet, in southern Norway.
Police said the satellite receiver had been seized and that plans to install and operate it had been halted.
A lawyer for the Police Security Service said the alleged receiver was intended to collect data from satellites in polar orbits.
The case matters because it involves suspected efforts to obtain information that could harm fundamental Norwegian interests if known to a foreign state.
