The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has launched a provocative Chinese-language social media campaign encouraging Chinese government officials to defect and share confidential information with the United States.
The campaign, revealed on Thursday, includes two fictionalised video dramatisations in which disillusioned members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) secretly reach out to the CIA. The videos aim to appeal to those disenchanted with the political climate in China and concerned about their personal safety and that of their families.
In one video, a character portraying a high-ranking CCP official expresses fear and anxiety after witnessing a wave of purges among his peers. “Officials around him are being discarded like worn-out shoes,” the narrator says, highlighting the climate of insecurity under President Xi Jinping’s leadership.
A Chinese-language description accompanying the video on YouTube elaborates: “He yearns to take control of his destiny and find a path to safeguard his family and the achievements he has built through years of hard work… Aware that everything he possesses could vanish in an instant, he is driven to make a difficult but crucial decision to safely reach out to the CIA.”
The campaign marks an unusually public approach by the CIA, signalling a direct appeal to those within the Chinese government who may be questioning the regime’s grip on power. It also represents a broader US intelligence strategy aimed at penetrating China’s opaque political system.
Political commentator Isaac Shum noted on X (formerly Twitter), “This kind of public outreach is exactly the sort of provocation that enrages the CCP – and Xi Jinping personally. His obsession with lifelong rule stems from a singular goal: to secure the Party’s unshakable control over China.”
The campaign is expected to further inflame tensions between Washington and Beijing, particularly as both countries vie for influence on the global stage amid ongoing diplomatic and economic disputes.
