A seemingly innocuous message on a social media platform has snowballed into a Sydney man being jailed for foreign interference. Alexander Csergo, 58, was jailed for three years and six months on Thursday, after being found guilty by a jury in March of helping Chinese spies. With time served, he will be eligible for parole in October. Between May and December 2022, the business owner knew he was assisting Chinese operatives – known only as Ken and Evelyn – when he prepared fake, plagiarised reports about Australia’s defence arrangements, the…
Tag: Australia news
The US now has access to more than half Australia’s military bases – could it drag the country unwillingly into war?
Exclusive: US-controlled weapons corporations and forces have control or access to more than 100 facilities across the continent, which some analysts describe as a ‘colonisation’ of Australia’s military. Find a map of them here US military interests control or have access to more than 100 defence facilities on Australian soil, in what some analysts describe as a “saturation” – even a “colonisation” – of the Australian continent. New data compiled by the Nautilus Institute and published by Guardian Australia maps the extent of US militarisation. The US military controls 17…
China warns of ‘consequences’ over Taiwan presence at Pacific Islands Forum
China said it had serious concerns about Taiwan’s presence at the annual Pacific Islands Forum in Palau, warning of “consequences” after the democratically ruled island attended the group’s opening ceremony on Monday. China views Taiwan as its own territory, and China-Taiwan tensions have featured prominently at the meeting, which is intended to demonstrate regional unity. “There will always be consequences,” Qian Bo, China’s special envoy for Pacific island affairs, said of Taiwan attending the event. “It’s not a threat,” he said, without specifying what the consequences would be. “This is…
Which countries have citizens killed or missing after Nepal-Tibet flash flood?
Hundreds of foreigners were in area to work, take guided treks or make pilgrimages when disaster struck Nepal-Tibet flash flood – latest updates Flash floods at the Nepal-Tibet border have killed at least 543 people and more than 1,500 are missing. Hundreds were foreigners in the area to work, take guided treks or make pilgrimages. Thousands have been rescued, with some of the injured taken to hospitals in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu. The number of missing may vary because of progress in the ongoing rescue efforts and differences in how data…
A fake website and a deluge of CVs: the Australian firm embroiled in an FBI probe into alleged Chinese espionage
When the first emails arrived, they were easily dismissed as spam. But as strangers continued to boast about their defence and security credentials, they became impossible to ignore. From mid-2025, a small Australian consultancy firm called Horizzen started receiving emails and strange calls from people applying for vague jobs in the United States. It would have been an ambitious global expansion for the Brisbane-based firm, which only had a few domestic clients. Except, it wasn’t hiring. Without its knowledge, a fake consultancy firm impersonating Horizzen had been launched online. It…
China expresses ‘grave concern’ as internal documents reveal suicide warning before death in Melbourne immigration detention
Exclusive: Serious questions raised about whether Chinese citizen was properly monitored at centre run by US prison giant Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The US private prison company running Australia’s immigration system was warned that a newly detained Chinese citizen expressed suicidal ideation and had a history of self-harm less than 24 hours before she died by suicide in a Melbourne detention centre, internal documents show. The death has raised serious questions about whether the detainee was properly monitored and whether she was placed…
China has banned hidden retractable car door handles. How are they dangerous – and what will Australia do?
They used to be a novelty in Australia: the futuristic, flush-mounted car door handles favoured by Elon Musk’s Tesla. However while the design – popularised with the Tesla Model S in 2012 and since adopted by other manufacturers – might look sleek, it may not be great in an emergency. After several deadly high-profile accidents involving different makes and models, in which power failings saw people trapped inside the vehicle, China has announced a world-first ban on hidden or retractable electric car door handles. But with less than six months…
Anthony Fauci’s diaries take aim at News Corp journalist Sharri Markson’s ‘nonsense’ Covid-19 investigation
Dr Anthony Fauci, the US’s chief medical adviser at the start of the pandemic, has described a book by News Corp investigative journalist Sharri Markson backing the “lab leak” theory of Covid-19’s origins as a “bunch of nonsense” in his newly released diaries. This week, Fauci, 85, was subpoenaed by the Republican senator Rand Paul to appear at a Senate hearing into Covid-19 and his handling of the pandemic. The physician and veteran former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who retired in 2022, accused Paul…
Australia to warn China it won’t be bulled by ‘provocative‘ actions as it builds military and nuclear arsenal
Penny Wong will warn China that Australia and other neighbouring nations will not be bullied by its “provocative” actions, after its involvement in another “destabilising and dangerous” incident this week. The foreign affairs minister – who will deliver the address on Thursday in the Philippines, where the 59th Asean foreign minister’s meeting is being held – will also caution world leaders against placing a toll on the strait of Hormuz after both Iran and the US threatened to do amid the protracted conflict. The speech comes as the crisis in…
China missile test: what do we know and why are countries in the region concerned?
China’s decision to conduct a missile test in the Pacific at short-notice has prompted swift condemnation from leaders including the US, Australia and New Zealand, who have accused Beijing of “destabilising” the region. China has urged foreign nations to not “over-interpret” the test, but it has set alarm bells ringing among leaders and experts. Why has China’s missile test in the Pacific proven controversial? Countries like the US and Australia, that have traditionally held sway in the region, have become increasingly concerned about China’s push for influence in the Pacific,…