On Monday, the American prosecutors announced that Gal Luft, a leader of a U.S. think tank charged last year with acting as an unregistered agent of the Chinese Communist Party, has been arrested and is expected to be extradited in the coming weeks or months. According to Reuters, prosecutors stated in a court document that Gal Luft, who holds dual American and Israeli citizenship and is a leader of a U.S. think tank, was arrested in Cyprus in February last year, but he fled during the bail period. Prosecutors further mentioned that he was arrested again later on, without providing specific details on when and where.
Once extradited, Gal Luft will appear in the Manhattan Federal Court for trial and will be required to present a defense. Gal Luft is the co-director of the Global Security Analysis Institute (GSAI). In July 2023, Gal Luft faced multiple charges for allegedly engaging in illegal activities in the United States for the benefit of the Chinese Communist Party. He was accused of failing to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and attempting to provide services for illegal weapons and oil transactions involving China and Iran. Additionally, he was charged with making false statements to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The Global Security Analysis Institute is a think tank focusing on energy, security, and economic trends. The organization stated last year that they are convinced of Gal Luft’s innocence. According to a Justice Department press release from July 2023 regarding this case, Gal Luft conspired with others to act as an agent of the Chinese Communist Party to operate within the United States and advance the interests of communist China.
In a social media post last year, Gal Luft denied being a arms dealer, dismissing the accusations as “politically motivated.” He has extensive connections in Washington. According to the indictment, Gal Luft, in 2016, secretly recruited and paid a former senior U.S. government official on behalf of a Chinese (Communist) entity. He was accused of advocating for policies favorable to communist China, including writing articles under the guise of a consultant and publishing them in Chinese newspapers.
Gal Luft also collaborated with a Chinese citizen associated with Huawei and posted articles and dialogues online in favor of communist China. The indictment accuses Gal Luft of acting as an intermediary to facilitate a deal for Chinese companies to sell weapons to Libya, including anti-tank launchers, grenade launchers, and mortar rounds (referred to by Gal Luft and his associates as “toys”); to sell drones to Kenya. He also discussed facilitating a weapon deal to Qatar and informed a Huawei executive that Israel was not suitable as an intermediary for the transaction.
This week, both Gal Luft and the GSAI research institute did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. The U.S. Department of Justice is cracking down on agents representing adversaries like China and Russia. Last week, federal prosecutors charged two employees of the Russian state media network RT with conspiring to influence the 2024 U.S. election. In the same week, Linda Sun, former deputy chief of staff to New York State Governor Kathy Hochul, was accused of acting as an agent for the Chinese Communist government, sparking concerns.