A Chinese general is in the line of the intelligence chief's scandal in Germany

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The German magazine "Der Spiegel" revealed new details regarding the investigations with the former head of the German foreign intelligence service, August Hanning, who was detained on suspicion of espionage, noting that he maintains close relations with a Chinese general who is considered a specialist in German affairs within Chinese intelligence.

According to the magazine, the Chinese military official is General Wang Jianzheng, who previously served in the Chinese embassy in East Berlin between 1987 and 1990.

She explained that the German authorities are currently investigating the possibility that Hanning passed sensitive information to the Chinese general, but the investigations announced so far have not confirmed that this happened. There has been no official comment from China regarding the information published by the magazine.

On Wednesday, Der Spiegel revealed possible contacts between Hanning and the Azerbaijani intelligence services, in a development that expanded the scope of questions about those who may have benefited from the information he is suspected of obtaining.

But the German government declined to confirm or deny this information. During the government's regular press conference, an official spokesman refused to comment on whether the investigations included contacts with Azerbaijani intelligence.

He also declined to clarify whether Berlin had received an official protest from Baku regarding its name being linked to the case. On the other hand, Azerbaijan strongly denied these accusations.

On Wednesday, Reuters quoted the Media and Broadcasting Council of Azerbaijan as saying that the information linking Hanning to the Azerbaijani intelligence services was “fabricated,” considering it part of a campaign to discredit the country.

The Azerbaijani News Agency also reported that Baku submitted a diplomatic protest to the German Chancellor's Office and the German Foreign Ministry, objecting to the reports linking it to the investigations. However, a German Foreign Ministry spokesman refused to confirm receipt of this protest.

These developments come within the framework of ongoing investigations into Hanning, who served as head of the German Foreign Intelligence Service between 1998 and 2005.

The German authorities are examining suspicions related to his obtaining secret intelligence documents and the possibility of sensitive information reaching foreign parties.

The contacts attributed to him with the Chinese general are of special importance, given the intelligence background reported by “Der Spiegel” regarding the military official and his previous work in East Germany.

However, German authorities have not yet announced results proving that Hanning handed over information to China or Azerbaijan.

While the circle of media reports on the case is expanding, Berlin is reticent to the details of the investigations, while Baku denies any connection to the accusations, and Beijing has remained silent so far. The nature of the information suspected of being leaked, and the parties that may have obtained it, remain among the most prominent issues that have not yet been resolved in the German investigations.