The likely imminent push for additional powers comes as Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has overhauled the national security environment with the appointment of two new agency chiefs, both seen as more aggressive than their predecessors: ASIO chief Mike Burgess and AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw. Both agencies have been told that the government expects to see foreign interference prosecutions. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video New powers would enable ASIO to serve a notice on people suspected of involvement in espionage activity that requires them to attend a hearing in which they must answer questions honestly or face criminal charges. Nothing a suspect says during a compulsory hearing can be used to prosecute them unless they lie. The abuse of compulsory questioning powers across the world is well known. Australian Lawyers Alliance spokesman, barrister Greg Barns Any move to strengthen ASIO’s powers might be resisted by legal and civil liberty groups, who view compulsory questioning powers as undermining a person’s right to silence.

But ASIO already has the power to coercively question suspected terrorists, and multiple state and federal agencies can use such powers to investigate organised crime and corruption and, in some cases, issue questioning warrants as suspects seek to flee Australia. The travels of Mr Chen Brian Chen was stopped at Melbourne airport last March after ASIO learned of allegations he attempted to recruit Liberal Party member Nick Zhao. Mr Zhao died last March after alerting ASIO that Mr Chen allegedly offered him $1 million if he ran for a seat in federal parliament. There is no suggestion that Mr Chen was involved in Mr Zhao's death. Nick Zhao (circled) sitting next to Federal Liberal MP Gladys Liu at a meeting at her house in 2016. Credit:Facebook In interviews in Hong Kong with The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and 60 Minutes, Mr Chen said he stressed to investigators at the airport he was just a businessman. Mr Chen denied ever meeting Mr Zhao even though phone records indicated contact between the pair, sources said. Then he was able to leave.

“[Coercive powers] should be available to counter those trying to sabotage our democracy,” a security source said. Mr Chen said he would return to Australia at Chinese new year on January 25, and he was "eager" to clarify his Australian affairs. But he has not returned and sources familiar with his case do not expect him to. Mr Chen’s local mobile phone became inactive around a fortnight ago after The Age and Herald called it several times. Analysis by officials of Mr Chen’s communications devices, travel and immigration records revealed he adopted multiple identities, including as a paint brush manufacturing manager, military vehicle manufacturer and Hong Kong journalist. He had also formed joint ventures with a subsidiary of Chinese military manufacturer Norinco. A key line of inquiry for agencies scrutinising Mr Chen’s activities is likely to involve his listing as a journalist for state-owned newspaper China Times, which is edited by Zeng Xiaohui who Mr Chen said in an interview had provided him with journalist accreditation. Mr Chen used the accreditation to attend the Trump-Kim summit in 2018. Sources with knowledge of investigations into Mr Chen said Western security officials had uncovered photos of Mr Chen at the summit, though they were unable to determine why he was there.

Loading Mr Chen told The Age and the Herald in an interview: "He (the China Times' Zeng) is a journalist. I just follow him, wander around the country, be introduced to some friends and do some projects ... This has nothing to do with the Chinese government." Mr Chen also tried to buy laboratory space at Australia’s science agency, the CSIRO, and he has connections to figures involved in China’s acquisition of an aircraft carrier from Ukraine. Among his collection of photos are pictures of him on Chinese naval vessels and, according to Mr Chen himself, meeting the Hong Kong businessman Xu Zengping who teamed with the Chinese military to acquire China’s first aircraft carrier from Ukraine. Mr Chen’s wife, who lives in Melbourne, previously ran a company with him which was in partnership with a subsidiary of a Chinese military manufacturer. She told The Age, the Herald and 60 Minutes that she was initially invited to come to Australia by Chinese language radio station 3CW, which is owned by local media magnate and political donor Tommy Jiang. Mr Jiang works closely with Chinese government propaganda agencies in Beijing to purchase Chinese language media outlets overseas and broadcast content approved by Beijing. He has made a small fortune working with Chinese Communist Party officials, but his associates have said he is motivated by money rather than ideology.

Loading Mr Jiang, who has declined multiple requests for interviews, also started a company with Mr Chen’s Australian business partner, Melbourne resident Wang Zhenhai. Mr Jiang has not otherwise been personally linked to Mr Chen. New laws? Leading legal figures such as University of NSW Professor George Williams and the Law Council of Australia have previously endorsed ASIO’s retention of compulsory questioning powers in terror cases, subject to existing checks and balances. However, the Australian Lawyers' Alliance spokesman, barrister Greg Barns, warned against allowing ASIO to compulsorily question foreign interference suspects, arguing that too many people, including overseas students and business people, could potentially be subject to questioning given the broad scope of what may be considered foreign interference.