On Thursday, the CIA released a new video in Chinese aimed at recruiting spies from among Chinese military personnel dissatisfied with corruption in their government and the purges of high-ranking generals being carried out by Xi Jinping.
According to a CIA representative, the video features a fictional officer faced with a difficult choice: to remain true to his principles and secure a better future for his family by contacting the agency.
The video includes a narrator's voice: “Anyone with leadership qualities will instill fear and be subjected to ruthless actions.” “I cannot allow these madmen to shape my daughter's future.”
The CIA aims to expand its recruitment campaign, which began last year, to establish new connections in China that are vital for intelligence gathering, the agency representative said, adding that they have recently succeeded in engaging with a government they have historically found difficult to work with.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe noted in an interview with CNN: “We will continue to offer Chinese officials and citizens the opportunity to work together to create a bright future.”
During his confirmation hearings, Ratcliffe emphasized that China would be a priority for the agency and pointed to the CIA's successes in rebuilding its network of informants in a country that was believed to have been lost just a few years ago.
A representative of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Lin Jian, stated at a press briefing that “China will take all necessary measures to resolutely counter the infiltration and subversive activities of anti-China forces abroad and will steadfastly protect its national sovereignty, security, and development interests,” commenting on the video.
“The plans of anti-China forces are doomed to fail.”
Since 2010, the United States has lost numerous spies in China as part of a prolonged counterintelligence campaign that The New York Times called “paralyzing to the intelligence collection system.” Rebuilding this network has been a long-standing priority for intelligence leaders.
