Intelligence: Chinese Spies Are Everywhere
freestar
August 22, 2023: The United States recently revealed that two American sailors were arrested and charged with spying for China. Both men were ethnic Chinese who were born in China but grew up in the United States, and one had applied to become a naturalized citizen. Both men provided confidential, not highly classified information, including technical manuals used by sailors to do their jobs on various warships. The two sailors also provided details on planned deployments of some ships. The mother of one of the sailors encouraged her son to cooperate with Chinese intelligence because that might enable him to move back to China and get a better civilian job. That will have to wait until they are out of custody. Both men were jailed pending trial because both were considered a flight (to China) risk.
Despite years of growing numbers of arrests and prosecutions of Americans accused of spying for China, the Chinese persist. While ethnic Chinese Americans are prime targets for Chinese recruiters of pies or informants, any foreigners with pro-Chinese attitudes are potential candidates for Chinese intelligence officers looking for potential recruits.
A favorite tactic of Chinese intel officers is to arrange for a financial arrangement between Chinese organizations and people China considers potential candidates for Chinese intelligence sources. Much of this effort is concentrated in large English speaking nations like the United States and Britain that have many trading relationships with Chinese firms and institutions. Western universities and faculty were always a prime target because these institutions and their key staff are not seen as a major target for Chinese influence operations. China understands that the staff of universities in the West are recognized by locals as a source of expert opinion on many matters. These faculty members can also be influenced by gifts of cash. These are not called gifts or, more accurately, bribes. Rather the money is considered a grant to support further academic studies on one subject or another. China arranges large grants. Government and popular opposition to these programs has not eliminated them, just forced China to change how it implements the program. While Western intelligence agencies remain alert and aware of this program, few others in government or academia seem to be concerned. After several years of indifference by university administrators towards requests to monitor and block Chinese influence efforts, governments are becoming more energetic and aggressive about this.
https://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htintel/articles/20230822.aspx
