Xu Junping

Not to be confused with Xi Jinping.

Xu Junping (徐俊平) is a former senior colonel in the People's Liberation Army who defected to the United States in December 2000.^[1][2] He is the highest-ranking defector from the PLA, and his defection was described as one of the worst intelligence losses in China's history.^[2][3]

Xu Junping
Allegiance	China
Branch	People's Liberation Army
Rank	Colonel
Commands	People's Liberation Army

Career

Xu was an American specialist within the PLA and an expert on disarmament.^[1] Prior to his defection, Xu was responsible for day-to-day military contact between China and the Americas.^[2] Prior to his defection, Xu was the director of the American and Oceanic Office of the Foreign Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of National Defense.^[4]

Xu had studied in America as a visiting scholar at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, and had also studied at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom.^[3][5]

Defection

Xu reportedly contacted the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of his own initiative.^[2] His defection was acknowledged by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China.^[2][1]