Melbourne, July 10 (ANI): The Chinese Government’s arrest of Shanghai-based Australian general manager of multinational mining and resources company, Rio Tinto, on charges of stealing state secrets is threatening to raise a diplomatic row between the two countries.

Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said the detainee, Stern Hu, would get his first opportunity to talk to Australian consular officials on Friday, five days after Chinese authorities first detained him.

“Once Australian officials have conducted that consular visit, officials will report to me and I will make that report available to his family and the employer. And once that process has been completed I will then make public remarks about the consular visit,” news.co.au quoted Smith, as saying.

Smith said Hu was being accused of causing a huge loss to China’s national economic security.

“As understood from a Shanghai State Security Bureau, during China’s iron ore negotiations with foreign miners in 2009, Stern Hu gathered and stole state secrets from China via illegal means including bribing internal staff of Chinese steel companies,” Smith said, reading from the statement posted on a government website.

Meanwhile, Australian PM Kevin Rudd, who rejected Opposition’s call to directly intervene the matter, said it was a time for “working calmly, methodically” through a very difficult consular case.

“As we’ve done with many consular cases before. We’ll make all representations at what levels are necessary,” he said.

Beijing, however, says it has evidence to back its claims that Hu and three Rio Tinto co-workers damaged China’s economy and harmed its security.

“Hu is suspected of stealing China’s state secrets for foreign countries,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said at a regular briefing yesterday.

“Competent authorities have sufficient evidence to prove they have stolen state secrets and have caused huge losses to China’s economic interests and security.”

In a related development, a senior executive at the Chinese steel maker, said to be a friend of the Australian, has also been detained. (ANI)