The head of a US think tank, Gal Luft, has been charged with acting as a Chinese agent and attempting to broker the sale of weapons and Iranian oil. Federal prosecutors allege that Luft recruited and paid an unnamed ex-US official to publicly support certain Chinese policies. The 57-year-old is also accused of attempting to broker arms sales involving customers in China, Libya, the UAE, and Kenya. Luft, who is considered a fugitive, allegedly failed to register as a foreign agent in 2016 while working to advance Chinese interests in the US. He is the co-director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, which focuses on energy and US security. Prosecutors also claim that he attempted to sell arms without a US permit, including anti-tank launchers, grenade launchers, and mortar rounds to Libya, as well as aerial bombs and rockets to the UAE and "strike" drones to Kenya. They also accuse Luft of trying to bypass US sanctions on Iranian oil by falsely claiming the oil was Brazilian. Luft was arrested in Cyprus on US charges on February 17 this year but fled after being released on bail pending extradition.

Source: BBC News (source article not available)