Unveiling China's Alleged Disinformation: Will the US Warning Hold Ground?
China rejects US State Department report on Chinese disinformation as in itself disinformation, according to Beijing's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Beijing's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has claimed that a report from the US State Department, which accuses the Chinese government of expanding disinformation efforts, is "disinformation in itself." In response to the State Department's report, the ministry expressed disagreement and highlighted their accusation of the Chinese government for expanding efforts to control information and spread propaganda and disinformation that fosters "digital authoritarianism" globally and within China.
The Global Engagement Center's US report, released on Thursday, accuses China of investing billions of dollars annually in manipulating foreign information. The report further highlights Chinese leader Xi Jinping's substantial increase in efforts to influence the global information landscape. Additionally, it emphasizes the US's apprehensions regarding China as a major military competitor and prominent adversary in the realm of ideas and global disinformation.
The Chinese flag flutters in Tiananmen Square, after the sacking of politician Bo Xilai from the countries powerful Politburo, in Beijing on April 11, 2012.
AFP/Getty Images
US issues stark warning about China's information efforts
China retaliated two days later, criticizing the US State Department's report and accusing it of engaging in disinformation, propaganda, and perception warfare. The ministry characterized the department's activities as a form of global engagement that involves infiltration and serves as a command center for these activities.
The ministry stated that the US is "an empire of lies through and through," citing the wars in Iraq and Syria, along with US reports of human rights abuses in China's Xinjiang region, as evidence. It further emphasized that despite the US's attempts to accuse other countries of disinformation, people around the world are becoming aware of the US's deceitful tactics to maintain its dominance by fabricating stories and defaming others.
