The Trump administration has declassified intelligence that suggests that China offered bounties to non-state actors to attack American troops in Afghanistan. The US government is currently working towards verifying the information. In the past, similar intelligence had been received regarding Russia but Washington passed it off as a “hoax”.
According to White House officials, President Donald Trump has been verbally briefed about the uncorroborated intelligence by national security adviser Robert O’Brien and reports were also included in the presidential briefing on December 17. It is still unclear whether the intelligence on China cites the payment of any bounties or attempted attacks on American soldiers.
Wang Wenbin, the spokesperson for China's foreign ministry, denied the accusation on Thursday, calling it a “smear and slander against China” that was “completely nonsense” and “fake news”.
This public approach is starkly different from the one followed by the White House last summer when The New York Times released reports suggesting that Russia had been paying bounties for the same. Trump had then dismissed the reports as a “hoax” and refused to go into details. Further, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany had openly criticized the Times and downplayed the underlying intelligence as unverified.
The declassification of this latest information comes at the time when the Trump administration has continued its efforts to build pressure on Beijing during the final days of Trump’s presidency. Beijing, who Washington considers a bigger threat than Moscow, has witnessed a significant downturn in its relations with the US over the past four years.
In recent months, the US has blamed China for the mishandling of the coronavirus epidemic and has also been locked with Beijing in a trade war. Further, it has pressured several countries into preventing Chinese tech giant Huawei from gaining access to their 5G networks due to fears of endangering national security. In addition, last month, it passed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA). This is a major blow to Chinese interests, as the bill strengthens the US’ relations with Tibet by outlining plans to open a US consulate in Lhasa and reaffirming Tibetans’ right to choose a successor to the Dalai Lama.
Trump’s relations with Russia however, have been far more amicable. In fact, he extended an invitation to Russia last year to join the G7 Summit, the focus of which was going to be China; the move was ultimately vetoed by other members. Trump had then said that he did not agree with the composition of the group as it was “very outdated” and that he hoped to expand the group and invite Russia, India, South Korea, and Australia to the next meet. Beijing reacted strongly to the move, warning that attempts to create a “small circle” against the Asian power will be “doomed to fail”. The current move is reflective of the continuation of Trump’s anti-China push before he hands over his office to Joe Biden on January 20.
US Investigating Unconfirmed Reports of Chinese Bounties on American Troops in Afghanistan
The Trump administration is set to declassify unconfirmed intelligence reports that China placed bounties on US troops in Afghanistan. Washington is still investigating the veracity of these claims.
January 1, 2021
SOURCE: CSRS