By Eric Vandenbroeck and co-workers

Worldwide Reach of Chinese Spies

An important worldwide issue as it is we covered it more than a decade ago.

Such concerns go as far back as October 2022 when the US Justice Department's efforts to combat what U.S. officials say is a relentless effort by Beijing to steal American secrets and technology, and to covertly push China's interests in the United States.

For example, since 2021, the U.S. government has been tracking a separate Chinese operation known as Volt Typhoon, which sought to embed itself in critical infrastructure within U.S. manufacturing, construction and information technology. But telecom infrastructure in the United States was considered more secure, until now.

Today's activities of Chinese spies of course involve also the current South China Sea dispute, with explanations varying from national pride and natural resources to vital maritime trade routes and even to nuclear strategy.

China’s Type 094A nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine.

The JL-3’s introduction may allow China to implement a South China Sea “bastion strategy,” obviating the need for its SSBNs to sail into the Pacific to launch their SLBMs. In this strategy, China would use the South China Sea as a sanctuary for its SSBNs, with the area protected by land-based aircraft and missiles, naval forces and fortified islands.

The South China Sea’s semi-enclosed configuration and proximity to China’s shores make it an ideal area to implement the strategy, with China’s large submarine base in Hainan showing that it is moving in that direction with its SSBN fleet.

Chinese intelligence services are often assumed to use a vacuum cleaner approach to espionage. It’s a view that risks undermining other countries’ security efforts.

For example last week, the Chinese hacking and spying operation known as “Salt Typhoon” also was revealed to have targeted former president Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, as well as staffers for Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign and Congress.

 

The Linda Sun Case

Another example is Linda Sun. A former aide to Governor Hochul, Linda Sun, leaves Brooklyn Federal Court after her arraignment, on September 3, 2024.

A former senior aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) and former governor Andrew M. Cuomo was arrested by the FBI on Tuesday and charged with secretly working for years to help Chinese officials, giving them insights into the state government and advocating on their behalf.

Federal prosecutors announced the indictment of Linda Sun and her husband, Chris Hu, for alleged illegal conduct dating back to her time as an aide to Cuomo, a Democrat who resigned the governorship in 2021 over unrelated issues surrounding his conduct.

Her husband was also charged with money laundering conspiracy, along with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and misuse of identification.

Since 2023, other cases have involved individuals accused or convicted of working for the Chinese government, in addition to FARA enforcement specifically. Last year, two men were accused of running a covert police station in Lower Manhattan on behalf of the Chinese government; three men were convicted of stalking a family in New Jersey on behalf of the Chinese government; and a 73-year-old activist was convicted last month of acting and conspiring as an agent for China.

Sun’s case shows federal investigators are homing in not just on foreign influence cases but specifically on the intersection of national security concerns and criminal law.

“This is a red light for, or at least a warning signal for, government officials that they do need to be aware of potential attempts to influence their conduct and that if something seems amiss, it may be worth either one looking into it or at the very least reporting it.”

Federal law enforcement authorities have warned for years that the Chinese government is seeking to influence not just Washington but also officials in state capitals, and have urged state and local authorities to be aware of such tactics.

The indictment describes the lengths to which Sun allegedly went to aid Chinese officials. During the coronavirus pandemic, for instance, she surreptitiously put a Chinese official onto a private New York state government conference call about the health response to the virus and the state’s efforts to fight a rise in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans, the indictment charges.

 

The Chinese Military

And it is not just the spies on the ground, the Chinese military could soon deploy a high-altitude spy drone that travels at least three times the speed of sound, according to a leaked U.S. military assessment, a development that would dramatically strengthen China’s ability to conduct surveillance operations.

Beijing could also use these operations to hurt the United States in several ways, he said. The Chinese government could use its infiltration of U.S. telecom networks to disable them during warfare, for instance. The information collected from Americans could be used for blackmail or disinformation campaigns.

A secret document from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, which has not previously been reported, shows the Chinese military is making technological advances that could help it target American warships around Taiwan and military bases in the region.

The document features satellite imagery dated Aug. 9 that shows two WZ-8 rocket-propelled reconnaissance drones at an air base in eastern China, about 350 miles inland from Shanghai. The drones are a cutting-edge surveillance system that could help China gather real-time mapping data to inform strategy or carry out missile strikes in a future conflict.

As earlier mentioned, China built a $50 billion military stronghold in the South China Sea.

In short, China has declared war on American democracy. They’re doing a good job of mounting their attacks while Washington has not done enough to defend the country’s information space. Without a credible deterrence policy, these enemies will keep seeking to undermine the United States. U.S. leaders can no longer allow foreign adversaries to eat away at the fabric of American constitutional democracy. The information war is here, whether they like it or not.

 

 

For updates click hompage here