foreignpolicy--2020-06-16--Iraq’s New Prime Minister Needs to Take Control of His Security Forces

Iraq ’ s New Prime Minister Needs to Take Control of His Security Forces Iraq ’ s new prime minister , Mustafa al-Kadhimi , faces numerous political and economic challenges coming into office , but his main task will be reining in the country ’ s plethora of security forces—some of which compete against each other .
Kadhimi ’ s background in activism and intelligence makes him well-placed to confront Baghdad ’ s challenges .
His first actions in office have included releasing protesters from jail and reinstating Abdul-Wahab al-Saadi as counterterrorism commander .
Saadi ’ s dismissal by then-Prime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a widespread feeling of resentment that led to anti-government protests in October .
Kadhimi ’ s decision to appoint a leader who was key to the fight against the Islamic State and to release prisoners who have suffered abuses at the hands of security forces over the past several months is a sign of his seriousness in mending the country ’ s deep divisions .
It ’ s a good start , but Kadhimi will need to exert his authority over Iraq ’ s security forces in order to truly stabilize the country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of several different paramilitary units due , in part , to the weakness of its regular army .
The Iraqi army was dismantled and then rebuilt after the 2003 U.S. invasion , part of a process of removing the legacy of Saddam Hussein and his Baathist regime that sent many of its most experienced officers packing .
The army had to be rebuilt again after it collapsed in the face of the Islamic State ’ s onslaught in 2014.Kadhimi will need to exert his authority over Iraq ’ s security forces in order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S.-led coalition has helped train 225,000 members of the security forces since 2014 , including army and air force units .
The Iraqi army now has around 150,000 personnel across 55 brigades .
Among the largest armed organizations in the country is the Popular Mobilization Units ( PMU ) , which commands approximately 150,000 personnel and has a $ 2 billion budget .
Initially raised as a group of disparate militias , some of which were politically close to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps , the PMU was made an official arm of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efforts to consolidate its member groups into a single body , the PMU still contains around 100 brigades , many of which maintain affiliations with political , religious , or tribal groups that complicate their relationship with the Iraqi state .
Some units have been implicated in rocket attacks on U.S. coalition forces , and four PMU brigades linked to senior Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ali Sistani recently expressed their desire to split from the organization to become part of the Iraqi defense ministry .
In northern Iraq , the Kurdistan autonomous region has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which also number around 150,000 soldiers .
The organization nominally falls under the control of the regional government ’ s Ministry of Peshmerga , but dozens of its brigades are more closely affiliated with two larger divisions that are linked to Kurdistan ’ s two dominant political parties , the Kurdistan Democratic Party and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan .
Iraq also has a large militarized police force , called the Federal Police , which played a key role in the fight against the Islamic State and is under the auspices of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s ecosystem of tens of thousands of personnel is the Emergency Response Division , which played a role not only in the 2017 battle of Mosul , in which the Islamic State was pushed out of the city , but also in clashes with protesters in which activists were killed .
Outside of the nationally and regionally organized military groups , there are several tribal armed units and local militias across the country—some of which are linked to the PMU and others to regional governorates—that have been accused of involvement in vigilantism .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ security forces raided an office of a group called Thaar Allah in Basra , which was accused of shooting protesters during demonstrations in the city .
The presence of such a sprawling constellation of armed groups with no central governing authority and , often , competing aims presents two major security challenges to the Iraqi government .
First , some of the security forces have been involved in many extrajudicial incidents , including attacks on protesters and firing rockets at U.S. forces .
The United States typically blames the paramilitary group Kataib Hezbollah @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the rocket attacks .
But attacks on protesters have been linked to a variety of different groups , including Badr , Saraya Khorasani , and Asaib Ahl al-Haq .
Hundreds of protesters were killed and thousands wounded in unrest between October 2019 and January 2020 , many at the hands of militia groups .
The other problem is that most paramilitary groups have sectarian , tribal , and political loyalties that present a serious challenge to the Iraqi government ’ s authority .
Some of this stems from the intricacies of modern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the country ’ s complex history , so to some degree this system won ’ t go away .
But the inability of recent prime ministers to work within this system and exercise any meaningful control over paramilitary groups has completely undermined the state ’ s legitimacy , strengthened the local and national power of militia groups , and ensured that the government could not exert control when order broke down.The presence of such a sprawling constellation of armed groups with no central governing authority presents major security challenges to the Iraqi government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ releasing protesters from prison will help to placate the public , but Kadhimi will need to curtail the power of local militia groups in order to bring a more lasting sense of stability to Iraq .
This means exerting control over the PMU by replacing the multilayered leadership structure that currently exists with a more formalized hierarchy whose authority ultimately flows from the state .
In addition to giving the government tighter control over militias , this would also help to identify and isolate those elements that continue to give their allegiance to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government also needs to lean more on governorates , as opposed to extralegal sectarian factions , and it should encourage local officials to rely more on police and military forces as opposed to PMU units , as the governor of Anbar province did in 2018 .
Kadhimi could also aim to work more closely with some of the more moderate pro-Iran elements of the PMU , exerting greater influence over them and sidelining others that are closer to Tehran .
Giving government-trained counterterrorism units a larger role in the fight against the Islamic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ PMU in this area will give the federal government greater control over sensitive operations and eventually reduce the standing of semi-independent militias .
In the face of a new threat from the Islamic State , the possible drawdown of coalition forces , and economic and social unrest , Iraq ’ s new prime minister faces both a challenge and an opportunity .
He acted quickly to reappoint Saadi , but this needs to be the foundation for broader security reform , and Kadhimi ’ s ultimate objective must be to exert his government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s myriad security forces .
The divisions in Iraq are too ingrained to disappear overnight , but taking control of the security situation is a necessary precondition for stabilizing the country .

Iraq’s new prime minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, faces numerous political and economic challenges coming into office, but his main task will be reining in the country’s plethora of security forces—some of which compete against each other.
Iraq’s new prime minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, faces numerous political and economic challenges coming into office, but his main task will be reining in the country’s plethora of security forces—some of which compete against each other.
Kadhimi’s background in activism and intelligence makes him well-placed to confront Baghdad’s challenges. His first actions in office have included releasing protesters from jail and reinstating Abdul-Wahab al-Saadi as counterterrorism commander. Saadi’s dismissal by then-Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi in September 2019 fed a widespread feeling of resentment that led to anti-government protests in October. Kadhimi’s decision to appoint a leader who was key to the fight against the Islamic State and to release prisoners who have suffered abuses at the hands of security forces over the past several months is a sign of his seriousness in mending the country’s deep divisions.
It’s a good start, but Kadhimi will need to exert his authority over Iraq’s security forces in order to truly stabilize the country. Iraq is burdened by the presence of several different paramilitary units due, in part, to the weakness of its regular army. The Iraqi army was dismantled and then rebuilt after the 2003 U.S. invasion, part of a process of removing the legacy of Saddam Hussein and his Baathist regime that sent many of its most experienced officers packing. The army had to be rebuilt again after it collapsed in the face of the Islamic State’s onslaught in 2014.Kadhimi will need to exert his authority over Iraq’s security forces in order to truly stabilize the country.
The U.S.-led coalition has helped train 225,000 members of the security forces since 2014, including army and air force units. The Iraqi army now has around 150,000 personnel across 55 brigades.
Among the largest armed organizations in the country is the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), which commands approximately 150,000 personnel and has a $2 billion budget. Initially raised as a group of disparate militias, some of which were politically close to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the PMU was made an official arm of the state in March 2018. Despite efforts to consolidate its member groups into a single body, the PMU still contains around 100 brigades, many of which maintain affiliations with political, religious, or tribal groups that complicate their relationship with the Iraqi state. Some units have been implicated in rocket attacks on U.S. coalition forces, and four PMU brigades linked to senior Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ali Sistani recently expressed their desire to split from the organization to become part of the Iraqi defense ministry.
In northern Iraq, the Kurdistan autonomous region has its own security forces known as Peshmerga, which also number around 150,000 soldiers. The organization nominally falls under the control of the regional government’s Ministry of Peshmerga, but dozens of its brigades are more closely affiliated with two larger divisions that are linked to Kurdistan’s two dominant political parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.
Iraq also has a large militarized police force, called the Federal Police, which played a key role in the fight against the Islamic State and is under the auspices of the interior ministry. Within the ministry’s ecosystem of tens of thousands of personnel is the Emergency Response Division, which played a role not only in the 2017 battle of Mosul, in which the Islamic State was pushed out of the city, but also in clashes with protesters in which activists were killed.
Outside of the nationally and regionally organized military groups, there are several tribal armed units and local militias across the country—some of which are linked to the PMU and others to regional governorates—that have been accused of involvement in vigilantism. For example, on May 11, security forces raided an office of a group called Thaar Allah in Basra, which was accused of shooting protesters during demonstrations in the city.
The presence of such a sprawling constellation of armed groups with no central governing authority and, often, competing aims presents two major security challenges to the Iraqi government.
First, some of the security forces have been involved in many extrajudicial incidents, including attacks on protesters and firing rockets at U.S. forces. The United States typically blames the paramilitary group Kataib Hezbollah, a member of the PMU, for the rocket attacks. But attacks on protesters have been linked to a variety of different groups, including Badr, Saraya Khorasani, and Asaib Ahl al-Haq. Hundreds of protesters were killed and thousands wounded in unrest between October 2019 and January 2020, many at the hands of militia groups.
The other problem is that most paramilitary groups have sectarian, tribal, and political loyalties that present a serious challenge to the Iraqi government’s authority. Some of this stems from the intricacies of modern Iraqi society and are deeply rooted in the country’s complex history, so to some degree this system won’t go away. But the inability of recent prime ministers to work within this system and exercise any meaningful control over paramilitary groups has completely undermined the state’s legitimacy, strengthened the local and national power of militia groups, and ensured that the government could not exert control when order broke down.The presence of such a sprawling constellation of armed groups with no central governing authority presents major security challenges to the Iraqi government.
Reinstalling Saadi as counterterrorism chief and releasing protesters from prison will help to placate the public, but Kadhimi will need to curtail the power of local militia groups in order to bring a more lasting sense of stability to Iraq. This means exerting control over the PMU by replacing the multilayered leadership structure that currently exists with a more formalized hierarchy whose authority ultimately flows from the state. In addition to giving the government tighter control over militias, this would also help to identify and isolate those elements that continue to give their allegiance to groups other than the state.
The government also needs to lean more on governorates, as opposed to extralegal sectarian factions, and it should encourage local officials to rely more on police and military forces as opposed to PMU units, as the governor of Anbar province did in 2018. Kadhimi could also aim to work more closely with some of the more moderate pro-Iran elements of the PMU, exerting greater influence over them and sidelining others that are closer to Tehran. Giving government-trained counterterrorism units a larger role in the fight against the Islamic State and reducing the role of the PMU in this area will give the federal government greater control over sensitive operations and eventually reduce the standing of semi-independent militias.
In the face of a new threat from the Islamic State, the possible drawdown of coalition forces, and economic and social unrest, Iraq’s new prime minister faces both a challenge and an opportunity. He acted quickly to reappoint Saadi, but this needs to be the foundation for broader security reform, and Kadhimi’s ultimate objective must be to exert his government’s control over the country’s myriad security forces. The divisions in Iraq are too ingrained to disappear overnight, but taking control of the security situation is a necessary precondition for stabilizing the country.


foreignpolicy--2020-06-16--China’s Health Silk Road Is a Dead-End Street

With little fanfare , the National People ’ s Congress—the annual convening of China ’ s top legislature and the country ’ s premier political event—rubber-stamped a $ 1.4 trillion infrastructure six-year spending plan on May 28 , with fifth-generation ( 5G ) wireless networks as its backbone .
Undeterred by the devastation that the pandemic has wrought on China and countries globally , the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP ) has stepped up with full force—by way of its tech champions—with a vision of what a post-pandemic world powered by 5G could look like .
On Jan. 25 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , China Mobile launched 5G base stations to provide the world a high-definition live broadcast of the construction of the Huoshenshan hospitals at the epicenter of the outbreak in Wuhan .
It was an act of deft public diplomacy , as Chinese-state media platforms such as People ’ s Daily telegraphed the content overseas .
The livestream garnered more than 490 million views online , as many marveled at the hospital almost completely built in just 10 days .
Huoshenshan hospital staff then used 5G networks to connect front-line health care workers and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s remote consultation platforms , while 5G-enabled robots took patients ’ vitals to minimize human contact .
Beyond the walls of the hospital , an army of hundreds of driverless vehicles sanitized the streets of Wuhan .
Meanwhile , 5G-powered drones dispatched face masks in Beijing .
While it is unclear the extent to which these technologies actually aided the government ’ s response to the crisis , the resulting visuals were compelling and bolstered a narrative of Chinese technological leadership .
Dominating global 5G networks is a long-standing pillar of the CCP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the more urgent as the party seeks off-ramps from the economic stumble caused by the pandemic .
On March 4 , the Politburo ’ s Standing Committee called for “ accelerating the construction of new infrastructure such as 5G networks and data centers.
” Again , on May 22 , at the opening of the 13th National People ’ s Congress , Premier Li Keqiang emphasized the need to step up “ develop [ ing ] next-generation information networks and expand 5G applications.
” COVID-19 is no doubt a test of Chinese President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But it has also emerged as a golden opportunity for the CCP to leverage critical emerging technologies to tout its superiority to Western models of governance and to advance its narrative of total control .
The Chinese government is pushing this narrative globally in a concerted and well-resourced fashion , drawing in China ’ s tech champions to do its bidding in countries around the world .
While the United States initially floundered in its efforts to contain the virus ’ s spread and distribute personal protective equipment ( PPE ) to medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 500,000 coronavirus testing kits and 1 million masks to the United States , documenting evidence of the massive shipment in a tweet captioned “ All the best to our friends in America.
” Meanwhile , Huawei—which seeks to dominate 5G wireless network deployments around the world—launched its own public-relations campaign .
Huawei sent thousands of masks and respirators to the United States and countries across Europe while offering artificial-intelligence-powered diagnostic technologies to Ecuador and the Philippines for free or at discounted prices .
The tech giant even donated a large stock of masks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou remains under house arrest awaiting extradition to the United States on charges of fraud .
And in Italy , a country that has felt the brunt of China ’ s heavy-handed online influence operations , Huawei launched several 5G test beds in a bid to build out the country ’ s networks .
These efforts are part of a complex global messaging choreography , as Beijing has cynically recast itself as a leader in combating the very pandemic it failed to contain .
Chinese diplomats took their case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ formats—including crudely doctored or staged video clips featuring citizens in Italy , Angola , and countries across Asia expressing gratitude to China for their provision of medical goods—to favorably portray Beijing ’ s handling of the outbreak .
The Chinese Foreign Ministry ’ s Information Department also sought to muddy the waters on the very origins of the virus by floating various conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 was a U.S.-developed pathogen introduced to Wuhan by U.S. servicemen participating in a military athletic event , or that a strain of the virus was already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Wuhan .
Several U.S. political leaders and commentators unintentionally bolstered this playbook by countering that the virus was man-made in a Wuhan lab .
While the efficacy of Beijing ’ s disinformation tactics remains an open question , if its ultimate goal was to sow some doubt—and more importantly , to distract from the facts and shift the narrative—it was successful .
Meanwhile , seeking to cement perceptions that China can nimbly and capably solve the world ’ s most pressing problems , Chinese tech companies such as Hikvision and Dahua have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around the world .
Leading surveillance companies and entrepreneurs alike have raced to develop thermal imaging technologies , with start-ups such as the Hangzhou-based company Rokid angling to sell thermal imaging glasses in the United States .
China has , historically , demonstrated ingenuity in advancing strategic initiatives—such as its Belt and Road Initiative—designed to advance its interests globally while concealing its internal economic and demographic weaknesses .
In this case , the revival of its concept of a “ Health Silk Road ” has given Beijing strategic cover to assert global leadership—in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has faltered in its own response to the crisis—while also seeking to generate new momentum in its bid for global 5G dominance .
In 2015 , China ’ s National Health and Family Planning Commission unveiled a three-year plan to establish “ health cooperation networks ” across Belt and Road countries and to bolster China ’ s role in multilateral health governance .
The Chinese government ’ s strategic planning proved prescient .
COVID-19 emerged as a prime opportunity for China to execute these ambitions on an accelerated timeline .
Beijing has systematically @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advance its model of technologically empowered health care—predicated on China ’ s claimed technological supremacy—while the United States and countries across Europe , the Middle East , and Asia have taken on water .
In a Feb. 28 call with Italy ’ s foreign minister , Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed his hope that their collaborative effort against COVID-19 would catalyze the creation of a “ Silk Road ” of health care , alluding to Xi ’ s hallmark Belt and Road economic strategy .
China has also turned to the World @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drawing on its growing clout within the agency , to advance its cause .
China had floated its Health Silk Road model in the WHO well before the pandemic .
Back in 2017 , WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus touted the Belt and Road ’ s role in advancing access to health care and parroted Beijing ’ s call for the Health Silk Road to promote China ’ s high-tech health care model in Belt and Road countries .
When the United States froze its funding to the WHO in April 2020 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just weeks later that it would donate $ 2 billion over two years to help other countries respond to the pandemic and would continue to develop hospitals and health infrastructure in countries across Africa .
China is now using the Health Silk Road and its mask diplomacy playbook to increase its leverage over developing countries in the throes of the pandemic .
Most concerning is the deployment of telecommunications and surveillance infrastructure .
This provides China ’ s technology companies a stronger foothold , opens the door to widespread data collection , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ social control in countries with little resilience to creeping authoritarianism .
The United States and its allies should adopt a three-part strategy in response to China ’ s attempt to rewrite history and using the pandemic crisis as a means to bolster its global influence .
First and most immediate is countering Beijing ’ s narrative of its role in vanquishing the virus and superior governance by providing much-needed aid around the world .
Top of the agenda should be maintaining pressure on China for an independent international investigation into the origins and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same time , the world ’ s liberal democracies should form a united front on responding to Beijing ’ s propaganda by noting the highly successful actions in handling the pandemic in South Korea , Taiwan , and New Zealand , among others ; pointing out that much of the “ donated ” PPE was in fact sold and often comprised counterfeit items of poor quality ; counter the disinformation spread by Chinese diplomats ; and call out the risks of sharing health data of national populations with China .
Another needed move @ @ @ @ @ @ @ keep Huawei out of allied 5G networks in North America , Europe , and Asia .
There is renewed energy in this regard in the wake of the United Kingdom ’ s recent decision to eliminate Huawei from its networks completely by 2023 and growing interest in forging a consortium of democracies to support alternative suppliers of telecommunications equipment , as well as other solutions such as 5G network architecture based on open interfaces .
These secure networks could form the foundation for a new electronic health consortium among the allies to facilitate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , along with vaccine development .
The international consortium of labs , research institutes , and universities pooling supercomputing resources to study the spread of coronavirus is an example of what such collaboration could look like .
Finally , these like-minded countries should work together to secure and diversify supply chains for medical equipment and pharmaceuticals .
None of the world ’ s leading democracies wants to rely on China for these critical goods going forward .
At the same time , no one country can be fully self-sufficient in these areas .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that sufficient manufacturing resilience and surge capacity exists among them , and that access to critical inputs such as active pharmaceutical ingredients is secured .
The CCP ’ s resurgent Health Silk Road effort is a key facet of Beijing ’ s design on shaping the post-pandemic world to its advantage .
Deliberate , collaborative action by liberal democracies around the world will be necessary to effectively counteract China ’ s strategy of exploiting the fissures between them , be better prepared for future health crises , and counter China ’ s usurpation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ help to ensure that the Health Silk Road ultimately leads nowhere .

With little fanfare, the National People’s Congress—the annual convening of China’s top legislature and the country’s premier political event—rubber-stamped a $1.4 trillion infrastructure six-year spending plan on May 28, with fifth-generation (5G) wireless networks as its backbone. Undeterred by the devastation that the pandemic has wrought on China and countries globally, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has stepped up with full force—by way of its tech champions—with a vision of what a post-pandemic world powered by 5G could look like.
With little fanfare, the National People’s Congress—the annual convening of China’s top legislature and the country’s premier political event—rubber-stamped a $1.4 trillion infrastructure six-year spending plan on May 28, with fifth-generation (5G) wireless networks as its backbone. Undeterred by the devastation that the pandemic has wrought on China and countries globally, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has stepped up with full force—by way of its tech champions—with a vision of what a post-pandemic world powered by 5G could look like.
On Jan. 25, as China was still reeling from COVID-19, China Mobile launched 5G base stations to provide the world a high-definition live broadcast of the construction of the Huoshenshan hospitals at the epicenter of the outbreak in Wuhan. It was an act of deft public diplomacy, as Chinese-state media platforms such as People’s Daily telegraphed the content overseas. The livestream garnered more than 490 million views online, as many marveled at the hospital almost completely built in just 10 days.
Huoshenshan hospital staff then used 5G networks to connect front-line health care workers and patients to medical experts in Beijing’s remote consultation platforms, while 5G-enabled robots took patients’ vitals to minimize human contact. Beyond the walls of the hospital, an army of hundreds of driverless vehicles sanitized the streets of Wuhan. Meanwhile, 5G-powered drones dispatched face masks in Beijing. While it is unclear the extent to which these technologies actually aided the government’s response to the crisis, the resulting visuals were compelling and bolstered a narrative of Chinese technological leadership.
Dominating global 5G networks is a long-standing pillar of the CCP’s technological ambitions, made all the more urgent as the party seeks off-ramps from the economic stumble caused by the pandemic. On March 4, the Politburo’s Standing Committee called for “accelerating the construction of new infrastructure such as 5G networks and data centers.” Again, on May 22, at the opening of the 13th National People’s Congress, Premier Li Keqiang emphasized the need to step up “develop[ing] next-generation information networks and expand 5G applications.”
COVID-19 is no doubt a test of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ironclad authority. But it has also emerged as a golden opportunity for the CCP to leverage critical emerging technologies to tout its superiority to Western models of governance and to advance its narrative of total control.
The Chinese government is pushing this narrative globally in a concerted and well-resourced fashion, drawing in China’s tech champions to do its bidding in countries around the world. While the United States initially floundered in its efforts to contain the virus’s spread and distribute personal protective equipment (PPE) to medical professionals, Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma donated 500,000 coronavirus testing kits and 1 million masks to the United States, documenting evidence of the massive shipment in a tweet captioned “All the best to our friends in America.”
Meanwhile, Huawei—which seeks to dominate 5G wireless network deployments around the world—launched its own public-relations campaign. Huawei sent thousands of masks and respirators to the United States and countries across Europe while offering artificial-intelligence-powered diagnostic technologies to Ecuador and the Philippines for free or at discounted prices. The tech giant even donated a large stock of masks and respirators to Canada, where its chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou remains under house arrest awaiting extradition to the United States on charges of fraud. And in Italy, a country that has felt the brunt of China’s heavy-handed online influence operations, Huawei launched several 5G test beds in a bid to build out the country’s networks.
These efforts are part of a complex global messaging choreography, as Beijing has cynically recast itself as a leader in combating the very pandemic it failed to contain. Chinese diplomats took their case to Twitter using a wide repertoire of formats—including crudely doctored or staged video clips featuring citizens in Italy, Angola, and countries across Asia expressing gratitude to China for their provision of medical goods—to favorably portray Beijing’s handling of the outbreak.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Information Department also sought to muddy the waters on the very origins of the virus by floating various conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 was a U.S.-developed pathogen introduced to Wuhan by U.S. servicemen participating in a military athletic event, or that a strain of the virus was already spreading in Italy well before the outbreak in Wuhan. Several U.S. political leaders and commentators unintentionally bolstered this playbook by countering that the virus was man-made in a Wuhan lab. While the efficacy of Beijing’s disinformation tactics remains an open question, if its ultimate goal was to sow some doubt—and more importantly, to distract from the facts and shift the narrative—it was successful.
Meanwhile, seeking to cement perceptions that China can nimbly and capably solve the world’s most pressing problems, Chinese tech companies such as Hikvision and Dahua have opportunistically pitched their latest products to countries around the world. Leading surveillance companies and entrepreneurs alike have raced to develop thermal imaging technologies, with start-ups such as the Hangzhou-based company Rokid angling to sell thermal imaging glasses in the United States.
China has, historically, demonstrated ingenuity in advancing strategic initiatives—such as its Belt and Road Initiative—designed to advance its interests globally while concealing its internal economic and demographic weaknesses.
In this case, the revival of its concept of a “Health Silk Road” has given Beijing strategic cover to assert global leadership—in contrast to an inward-looking United States that has faltered in its own response to the crisis—while also seeking to generate new momentum in its bid for global 5G dominance. In 2015, China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission unveiled a three-year plan to establish “health cooperation networks” across Belt and Road countries and to bolster China’s role in multilateral health governance. The Chinese government’s strategic planning proved prescient. COVID-19 emerged as a prime opportunity for China to execute these ambitions on an accelerated timeline.
Beijing has systematically used bilateral connections and multilateral institutions to advance its model of technologically empowered health care—predicated on China’s claimed technological supremacy—while the United States and countries across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia have taken on water. In a Feb. 28 call with Italy’s foreign minister, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed his hope that their collaborative effort against COVID-19 would catalyze the creation of a “Silk Road” of health care, alluding to Xi’s hallmark Belt and Road economic strategy.
China has also turned to the World Health Organization in the United Nations, drawing on its growing clout within the agency, to advance its cause. China had floated its Health Silk Road model in the WHO well before the pandemic. Back in 2017, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus touted the Belt and Road’s role in advancing access to health care and parroted Beijing’s call for the Health Silk Road to promote China’s high-tech health care model in Belt and Road countries. When the United States froze its funding to the WHO in April 2020, China stepped up its contributions and announced just weeks later that it would donate $2 billion over two years to help other countries respond to the pandemic and would continue to develop hospitals and health infrastructure in countries across Africa.
China is now using the Health Silk Road and its mask diplomacy playbook to increase its leverage over developing countries in the throes of the pandemic. Most concerning is the deployment of telecommunications and surveillance infrastructure. This provides China’s technology companies a stronger foothold, opens the door to widespread data collection, and sets the table for greater repression and social control in countries with little resilience to creeping authoritarianism.
The United States and its allies should adopt a three-part strategy in response to China’s attempt to rewrite history and using the pandemic crisis as a means to bolster its global influence. First and most immediate is countering Beijing’s narrative of its role in vanquishing the virus and superior governance by providing much-needed aid around the world. Top of the agenda should be maintaining pressure on China for an independent international investigation into the origins and spread of the virus.
At the same time, the world’s liberal democracies should form a united front on responding to Beijing’s propaganda by noting the highly successful actions in handling the pandemic in South Korea, Taiwan, and New Zealand, among others; pointing out that much of the “donated” PPE was in fact sold and often comprised counterfeit items of poor quality; counter the disinformation spread by Chinese diplomats; and call out the risks of sharing health data of national populations with China.
Another needed move is doubling down on the effort to keep Huawei out of allied 5G networks in North America, Europe, and Asia. There is renewed energy in this regard in the wake of the United Kingdom’s recent decision to eliminate Huawei from its networks completely by 2023 and growing interest in forging a consortium of democracies to support alternative suppliers of telecommunications equipment, as well as other solutions such as 5G network architecture based on open interfaces.
These secure networks could form the foundation for a new electronic health consortium among the allies to facilitate disease detection, study, and treatment, along with vaccine development. The international consortium of labs, research institutes, and universities pooling supercomputing resources to study the spread of coronavirus is an example of what such collaboration could look like.
Finally, these like-minded countries should work together to secure and diversify supply chains for medical equipment and pharmaceuticals. None of the world’s leading democracies wants to rely on China for these critical goods going forward. At the same time, no one country can be fully self-sufficient in these areas. Instead, emphasis should be on ensuring that sufficient manufacturing resilience and surge capacity exists among them, and that access to critical inputs such as active pharmaceutical ingredients is secured.
The CCP’s resurgent Health Silk Road effort is a key facet of Beijing’s design on shaping the post-pandemic world to its advantage. Deliberate, collaborative action by liberal democracies around the world will be necessary to effectively counteract China’s strategy of exploiting the fissures between them, be better prepared for future health crises, and counter China’s usurpation of international institutions. Doing so will help to ensure that the Health Silk Road ultimately leads nowhere.


foreignpolicy--2020-06-17--China and India Trade Blame For Deadly Mountain Clashes

Here is today ’ s Foreign Policy brief : India announces 20 soldiers killed in border clash with China , North Korea threatens further escalation over leaflet dispute , and New Zealand updates quarantine measures after breach .
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A picturesque Himalayan border region between India and China became the site of military conflict on Monday , as tensions that had been building between the nations for the past few months finally led to deadly hand-to-hand clashes .
In such a remote area , and with both sides eager to spin the story to their own benefit , it ’ s difficult to know who may have , literally , thrown the first stone—both sides at least maintain no shots were fired .
Death tolls , too , have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ army initially said three of their soldiers had been killed , but this figure was later revised to 20 , after adding that an additional 17 had died from their injuries .
Although it ’ s likely China also suffered casualties , Chinese authorities have yet to release any figures .
How have both countries reacted ?
So far , the response has been muted from both sides .
Prime Minister Narendra Modi , usually active on social media has been silent .
A Canadian government readout of a call Modi had with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the issue , but there was no such mention in the Indian government ’ s version .
An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said the clash arose from “ an attempt by the Chinese side to unilaterally change the status quo.
” His Chinese counterpart laid the blame on India for “ provoking and attacking Chinese personnel , resulting in serious physical confrontation between border forces on the two sides.
” Hu Xijin , the editor-in-chief of the pro-government Chinese newspaper Global Times suggested that China ’ s withholding of casualty figures was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order “ to avoid stoking public mood ” in both countries .
“ This is goodwill from Beijing , ” he wrote on Twitter .
What comes next ?
As Foreign Policy ’ s James Palmer and Ravi Agrawal point out in an in-depth explainer , the skirmish comes at a time when Chinese officials are under increasing pressure to be “ performatively nationalist , ” leading to concerns that this won ’ t wind down quickly .
“ It could mean months of skirmishes and angry exchanges along the border , likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Agrawal write .
If cooler heads do not prevail , the mountainous region may prove to be a brake on any quick escalation .
“ The conditions in the Himalayas themselves severely limit military action ; it takes up to two weeks for troops to acclimate to the altitude , logistics and provisioning are extremely limited , and air power is severely restrained , ” they add .
North Korea escalates .
A State Department spokesperson urged North Korea to “ refrain from further counterproductive actions , ” after North Korea blew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ office in the border town of Kaesong on Tuesday .
On Wednesday , North Korea rejected an offer by South Korea to send special envoys to defuse the situation , and threatened to send more troops to areas along the border between the two countries .
On Wednesday , a spokesman for the President Moon Jae-in said South Korea would no longer “ tolerate any more of North Korea ’ s indiscreet rhetoric.
” Writing in Foreign Policy on Tuesday , Doug Bandow lamented South Korea ’ s “ decision to grovel ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that had been dropping leaflets on North Korean territory .
“ The Moon government sacrificed its dignity and its citizens ’ freedom , no small matters .
Moreover , Seoul abandoned its leverage , which Pyongyang revealed to be substantial , ” Bandow writes .
“ The North fears propaganda directed at its citizens .
Instead of shutting down such activities , the South should encourage them.
” Brazil records highest daily number of coronavirus cases .
On Tuesday , Brazil recorded 34,918 new coronavirus cases , its highest daily count of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a crisis , we sympathize with bereaved families , but it is managed , ” said Walter Braga Netto , a senior official in the president ’ s office , adding that Brazil ’ s rate of deaths per million residents was still lower than in European countries with lower numbers of cases .
That claim is questionable , however , given that it is based on limited data .
Brazil has tested just a fraction of its population compared to countries such as Spain , Italy , and the U.K. , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as many tests per million residents .
Turkey and France trade barbs .
Turkey has hit back at French criticism over its “ aggressive ” role in Libya , arguing that French support for Khalifa Haftar has “ exacerbated the crisis in Libya.
” On Monday , France called for talks with NATO allies over Turkey ’ s posture in the Libyan conflict .
“ What should actually be a cause for concern are France ’ s dark ties .
It is unacceptable for a NATO ally to behave this way , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ministry said .
Suriname president loses .
Suriname ’ s electoral authority has now verified that President Desi Bouterse lost in the country ’ s national elections last month , paving the way for his exit after almost 40 years at the center of Surinamese politics .
The Progressive Reform party , led by Chan Santokhi , won 20 seats in the 51-seat national assembly ; the National Democratic Party of Bouterse won 16 .
Santokhi says he will be able to form a coalition that should elect him president once the assembly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the month .
Bouterse was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a court in November for ordering the execution of 15 of his political rivals .
Until now , presidential immunity had kept him out of prison .
New Zealand ’ s coronavirus-free status .
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has instructed the country ’ s defense forces to manage the country ’ s quarantine facilities after an episode where two travelers from Britain were allowed to break compulsory quarantine to see their dying parent .
Both travelers have since tested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can not allow the gains we have all made to be squandered by processes that are not followed , ” Ardern said at a news conference .
U.K. department merger raises fears of politicized aid .
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the Department of International Development would be merged with the larger Foreign Office , prompting fears that the United Kingdom ’ s development aid could become tied to broader trade goals .
“ We have received extensive evidence that merging foreign affairs departments and aid departments erode international reputations , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there is very little benefit , ” said Sarah Champion , the chair of the British International Development Select Committee .
“ In the cases of Canada and Australia , the mergers have not improved the quality of aid , and we have heard that the reorganizations eroded their soft power.
” Lost luggage .
Ever get that nagging feeling that you ’ ve forgotten something ?
In Switzerland , one traveler disembarked a little lighter when stepping off a Swiss Federal Railways train from St. Gallen to Lucerne after leaving a $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Swiss police have yet to track down the owner of the package , and have appealed to the public for help with the search .
Authorities say the owner of the gold bars has five years to claim the package , currently held by the public prosecutor ’ s office .
Fines for flatulence .
Austrian police have fined a Vienna man 500 euros ( about $ 560 ) for farting loudly in front of police officers in a park .
The Vienna police wrote on Twitter that “ of course no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go , ” but insisted that the offender had been uncooperative and provocative .
He allegedly arose from a bench , looked the cops in the eye , and “ let go a massive intestinal wind apparently with full intent.
” For more from FP , visit foreignpolicy.com , subscribe here , or sign up for our other newsletters .
Send your tips , comments , questions , or corrections to morningbrief @ foreignpolicy.com .

Here is today’s Foreign Policy brief: India announces 20 soldiers killed in border clash with China, North Korea threatens further escalation over leaflet dispute, and New Zealand updates quarantine measures after breach.
Here is today’s Foreign Policy brief: India announces 20 soldiers killed in border clash with China, North Korea threatens further escalation over leaflet dispute, and New Zealand updates quarantine measures after breach.
If you would like to receive Morning Brief in your inbox every weekday please sign up here.
China and India Point Fingers After Deadly Clash
A picturesque Himalayan border region between India and China became the site of military conflict on Monday, as tensions that had been building between the nations for the past few months finally led to deadly hand-to-hand clashes.
In such a remote area, and with both sides eager to spin the story to their own benefit, it’s difficult to know who may have, literally, thrown the first stone—both sides at least maintain no shots were fired. Death tolls, too, have been hard to come by. The Indian army initially said three of their soldiers had been killed, but this figure was later revised to 20, after adding that an additional 17 had died from their injuries. Although it’s likely China also suffered casualties, Chinese authorities have yet to release any figures.
How have both countries reacted? So far, the response has been muted from both sides. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, usually active on social media has been silent. A Canadian government readout of a call Modi had with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday mentioned the issue, but there was no such mention in the Indian government’s version.
An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said the clash arose from “an attempt by the Chinese side to unilaterally change the status quo.” His Chinese counterpart laid the blame on India for “provoking and attacking Chinese personnel, resulting in serious physical confrontation between border forces on the two sides.”
Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of the pro-government Chinese newspaper Global Times suggested that China’s withholding of casualty figures was a gesture of restraint on its part in order “to avoid stoking public mood” in both countries. “This is goodwill from Beijing,” he wrote on Twitter.
What comes next? As Foreign Policy’s James Palmer and Ravi Agrawal point out in an in-depth explainer, the skirmish comes at a time when Chinese officials are under increasing pressure to be “performatively nationalist,” leading to concerns that this won’t wind down quickly. “It could mean months of skirmishes and angry exchanges along the border, likely with more accidental deaths,” Palmer and Agrawal write.
If cooler heads do not prevail, the mountainous region may prove to be a brake on any quick escalation. “The conditions in the Himalayas themselves severely limit military action; it takes up to two weeks for troops to acclimate to the altitude, logistics and provisioning are extremely limited, and air power is severely restrained,” they add.
What We’re Following Today
North Korea escalates. A State Department spokesperson urged North Korea to “refrain from further counterproductive actions,” after North Korea blew up a building housing an inter-Korean liaison office in the border town of Kaesong on Tuesday. On Wednesday, North Korea rejected an offer by South Korea to send special envoys to defuse the situation, and threatened to send more troops to areas along the border between the two countries. On Wednesday, a spokesman for the President Moon Jae-in said South Korea would no longer “tolerate any more of North Korea’s indiscreet rhetoric.”
Writing in Foreign Policy on Tuesday, Doug Bandow lamented South Korea’s “decision to grovel” regarding their swift outlawing of defector organizations that had been dropping leaflets on North Korean territory. “The Moon government sacrificed its dignity and its citizens’ freedom, no small matters. Moreover, Seoul abandoned its leverage, which Pyongyang revealed to be substantial,” Bandow writes. “The North fears propaganda directed at its citizens. Instead of shutting down such activities, the South should encourage them.”
Brazil records highest daily number of coronavirus cases. On Tuesday, Brazil recorded 34,918 new coronavirus cases, its highest daily count of the pandemic so far. “There is a crisis, we sympathize with bereaved families, but it is managed,” said Walter Braga Netto, a senior official in the president’s office, adding that Brazil’s rate of deaths per million residents was still lower than in European countries with lower numbers of cases. That claim is questionable, however, given that it is based on limited data. Brazil has tested just a fraction of its population compared to countries such as Spain, Italy, and the U.K., which have conducted approximately ten to twelve times as many tests per million residents.
Turkey and France trade barbs. Turkey has hit back at French criticism over its “aggressive” role in Libya, arguing that French support for Khalifa Haftar has “exacerbated the crisis in Libya.” On Monday, France called for talks with NATO allies over Turkey’s posture in the Libyan conflict. “What should actually be a cause for concern are France’s dark ties. It is unacceptable for a NATO ally to behave this way,” the statement from Turkey’s foreign ministry said.
Suriname president loses. Suriname’s electoral authority has now verified that President Desi Bouterse lost in the country’s national elections last month, paving the way for his exit after almost 40 years at the center of Surinamese politics. The Progressive Reform party, led by Chan Santokhi, won 20 seats in the 51-seat national assembly; the National Democratic Party of Bouterse won 16. Santokhi says he will be able to form a coalition that should elect him president once the assembly is sworn in at the end of the month. Bouterse was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a court in November for ordering the execution of 15 of his political rivals. Until now, presidential immunity had kept him out of prison.
Keep an Eye On
New Zealand’s coronavirus-free status. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has instructed the country’s defense forces to manage the country’s quarantine facilities after an episode where two travelers from Britain were allowed to break compulsory quarantine to see their dying parent. Both travelers have since tested positive for the coronavirus. “I cannot allow the gains we have all made to be squandered by processes that are not followed,” Ardern said at a news conference.
U.K. department merger raises fears of politicized aid. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the Department of International Development would be merged with the larger Foreign Office, prompting fears that the United Kingdom’s development aid could become tied to broader trade goals. “We have received extensive evidence that merging foreign affairs departments and aid departments erode international reputations, and actually are so costly and disruptive there is very little benefit,” said Sarah Champion, the chair of the British International Development Select Committee. “In the cases of Canada and Australia, the mergers have not improved the quality of aid, and we have heard that the reorganizations eroded their soft power.”
Odds and Ends
Lost luggage. Ever get that nagging feeling that you’ve forgotten something? In Switzerland, one traveler disembarked a little lighter when stepping off a Swiss Federal Railways train from St. Gallen to Lucerne after leaving a $191,000 package of gold bars on board. Swiss police have yet to track down the owner of the package, and have appealed to the public for help with the search. Authorities say the owner of the gold bars has five years to claim the package, currently held by the public prosecutor’s office.
Fines for flatulence. Austrian police have fined a Vienna man 500 euros (about $560) for farting loudly in front of police officers in a park. The Vienna police wrote on Twitter that “of course no one is reported for accidentally letting one go,” but insisted that the offender had been uncooperative and provocative. He allegedly arose from a bench, looked the cops in the eye, and “let go a massive intestinal wind apparently with full intent.”
That’s it for today.
For more from FP, visit foreignpolicy.com, subscribe here, or sign up for our other newsletters. Send your tips, comments, questions, or corrections to morningbrief@foreignpolicy.com.


foreignpolicy--2020-06-17--Beyond Ukraine Scandal, Bolton Says Trump Sought China’s Help for Reelection

Beyond Ukraine Scandal , Bolton Says Trump Sought China ’ s Help for Reelection The Ukraine scandal that sparked a political firestorm and monthslong impeachment investigation may not have been a one-off aberration but part of a larger pattern by which U.S. President Donald Trump adjusted foreign policy to help his reelection bid , according to new bombshell allegations from his previous national security advisor , John Bolton .
In a new tell-all book on his time serving in the Trump White House , Bolton alleges that the president asked his Chinese counterpart , Xi Jinping , for his help @ @ @ @ @ @ @ supporting American farmers in swing states with favorable trade deals .
This is among a raft of damaging allegations that Bolton has leveled against the president in a new Wall Street Journal op-ed and other reports based on advance copies of his forthcoming memoir , The Room Where It Happened , with Bolton coming out swinging against his former boss following a pitched legal battle with the White House over whether his book could be published in its current form .
Bolton reportedly spends much of the 592-page book focused on his former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He said malfeasance in the White House included Trump ’ s willingness to cut short investigations into Turkey ’ s state-owned bank , Halkbank , and into China ’ s ZTE corporation to get into Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ’ s and Xi ’ s good graces , according to early reviews of the book .
According to Bolton , these moves were centered on securing his reelection .
“ I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my White House tenure that wasn ’ t driven by re-election calculations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ op-ed .
The former national security advisor ’ s level of alarm with Trump ’ s practices eventually caused him to seek a meeting with Attorney General Bill Barr , according to a copy of the book obtained by the New York Times .
Some presidential historians suggested that Trump ’ s flagrant blending of U.S. policy with his personal political interests is without precedent in American history .
“ There have been corrupt presidents , ” said Joseph Ellis , a historian who has won both a National Book Award and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Republicans tend to be corrupt about money , and the Democrats tend to be corrupt about sex .
But Trump is unprecedented in the brazenness of his behavior.
” In Bolton ’ s account , Trump pledged to help intervene in a federal court proceeding in New York to stop a probe into a state-owned Turkish bank accused of violating U.S. sanctions against Iran .
“ Trump then told Erdogan he would take care of things , explaining that the Southern District prosecutors were not his people , but were Obama people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when they were replaced by his people , ” Bolton wrote , according to the Washington Post .
Trump directly sought Xi ’ s help in winning reelection at a June 2019 meeting of the two leaders in Osaka , Japan , Bolton wrote in the Wall Street Journal op-ed .
“ Trump then , stunningly , turned the conversation to the coming U.S. presidential election , alluding to China ’ s economic capability and pleading with Xi to ensure he ’ d win , ” said the former Trump national security advisor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ He stressed the importance of farmers and increased Chinese purchases of soybeans and wheat in the electoral outcome .
I would print Trump ’ s exact words , but the government ’ s prepublication review process has decided otherwise.
” According to Bolton , Trump also allegedly endorsed Xi ’ s sweeping crackdown on ethnic Uighur minorities in the country ’ s Xinjiang province under the guise of a counterterrorism campaign .
Over 1 million Uighurs are reportedly detained in concentration camps in a campaign that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ century.
” “ [ W ] ith only interpreters present , Xi had explained to Trump why he was basically building concentration camps in Xinjiang .
According to our interpreter , Trump said that Xi should go ahead with building the camps , which Trump thought was exactly the right thing to do , ” Bolton wrote in his Wall Street Journal piece , recounting an incident at the G-20 meeting in Osaka .
Trump had used the beginning of the meeting to make the case that there was “ great hostility ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But Trump has also asked China to help him politically in public—calling on Beijing to investigate the family of his presidential reelection rival , former Vice President Joe Biden , during an October 2019 press conference on the White House ’ s South Lawn , based on business deals Biden ’ s son had struck in China .
Trump ’ s earlier effort to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky into investigating the Bidens by allegedly withholding U.S. aid formed the basis for his impeachment late last year .
He was acquitted in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is scornful of the House Democrats who impeached Trump over his behavior toward Ukraine , but he suggests that this is because they limited their inquiry to that controversy alone and tried to move too quickly for political reasons , according to an account in the New York Times .
Bolton writes that the Democrats committed “ impeachment malpractice ” in part because they failed to look into other offenses such as Trump ’ s alleged effort to intervene in the probe into Turkey ’ s Halkbank and China ’ s ZTE .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of political ammunition to Biden , Trump ’ s 2020 Democratic rival , whose surrogates have castigated the president as reckless and dangerous to American democracy .
But it ’ s unclear if Bolton ’ s tell-all would turn more Republican allies or Trump ’ s die-hard base of fans against him , given their unwavering support for the president through past scandals .
Trump has zeroed in on China during his presidential campaign , portraying himself as the best leader to stand up to Beijing amid the coronavirus pandemic that originated in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ One nation deserves the blame : China , ” a recent Trump campaign ad said .
“ They lied about it , covered it up.
” The pro-Trump America First Action PAC has released a slew of ads targeting the Democratic candidate as “ Beijing Biden ” after making a $ 10 million ad buy in the hotly contested states of Michigan , Wisconsin , and Pennsylvania , all of which Trump won in 2016 .
The White House has tried to block the publication of Bolton ’ s book , saying it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disclosed publicly .
“ This book is full of classified information , which is inexcusable .
Former National Security Advisor John Bolton should know all too well that it ’ s unacceptable to have highly classified information from the government of the United States in a book that will be published , ” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters on Wednesday .
Bolton ’ s lawyers and publishers have shot back , saying such claims are unfounded and detailing multiple rounds of clearance reviews Bolton went through with the White House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Trump is using the excuse simply to block the publication of an unflattering book .
The new revelations set up a new phase in the legal battle between the former national security advisor and White House ; Trump has said Bolton should face “ criminal problems ” for disclosing classified information , and he asserted that “ any conversation with me is classified.
” Bolton is the latest in a string of former senior Trump officials who have spoken out against the president .
“ Donald Trump is the first president in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unite the American people—does not even pretend to try .
Instead , he tries to divide us , ” former Defense Secretary James Mattis said in a statement to Foreign Policy and other news outlets .

The Ukraine scandal that sparked a political firestorm and monthslong impeachment investigation may not have been a one-off aberration but part of a larger pattern by which U.S. President Donald Trump adjusted foreign policy to help his reelection bid, according to new bombshell allegations from his previous national security advisor, John Bolton.
The Ukraine scandal that sparked a political firestorm and monthslong impeachment investigation may not have been a one-off aberration but part of a larger pattern by which U.S. President Donald Trump adjusted foreign policy to help his reelection bid, according to new bombshell allegations from his previous national security advisor, John Bolton.
In a new tell-all book on his time serving in the Trump White House, Bolton alleges that the president asked his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, for his help in securing Trump’s reelection and supporting American farmers in swing states with favorable trade deals.
This is among a raft of damaging allegations that Bolton has leveled against the president in a new Wall Street Journal op-ed and other reports based on advance copies of his forthcoming memoir, The Room Where It Happened, with Bolton coming out swinging against his former boss following a pitched legal battle with the White House over whether his book could be published in its current form.
Bolton reportedly spends much of the 592-page book focused on his former boss’s perceived foreign-policy misdeeds. He said malfeasance in the White House included Trump’s willingness to cut short investigations into Turkey’s state-owned bank, Halkbank, and into China’s ZTE corporation to get into Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s and Xi’s good graces, according to early reviews of the book. According to Bolton, these moves were centered on securing his reelection. “I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my White House tenure that wasn’t driven by re-election calculations,” Bolton writes in the Journal op-ed. The former national security advisor’s level of alarm with Trump’s practices eventually caused him to seek a meeting with Attorney General Bill Barr, according to a copy of the book obtained by the New York Times.
Some presidential historians suggested that Trump’s flagrant blending of U.S. policy with his personal political interests is without precedent in American history. “There have been corrupt presidents,” said Joseph Ellis, a historian who has won both a National Book Award and a Pulitzer Prize for his work. “The Republicans tend to be corrupt about money, and the Democrats tend to be corrupt about sex. But Trump is unprecedented in the brazenness of his behavior.”
In Bolton’s account, Trump pledged to help intervene in a federal court proceeding in New York to stop a probe into a state-owned Turkish bank accused of violating U.S. sanctions against Iran. “Trump then told Erdogan he would take care of things, explaining that the Southern District prosecutors were not his people, but were Obama people, a problem that would be fixed when they were replaced by his people,” Bolton wrote, according to the Washington Post.
Trump directly sought Xi’s help in winning reelection at a June 2019 meeting of the two leaders in Osaka, Japan, Bolton wrote in the Wall Street Journal op-ed. “Trump then, stunningly, turned the conversation to the coming U.S. presidential election, alluding to China’s economic capability and pleading with Xi to ensure he’d win,” said the former Trump national security advisor and veteran of three other Republican administrations. “He stressed the importance of farmers and increased Chinese purchases of soybeans and wheat in the electoral outcome. I would print Trump’s exact words, but the government’s prepublication review process has decided otherwise.”
According to Bolton, Trump also allegedly endorsed Xi’s sweeping crackdown on ethnic Uighur minorities in the country’s Xinjiang province under the guise of a counterterrorism campaign. Over 1 million Uighurs are reportedly detained in concentration camps in a campaign that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called “the stain of the century.”
“[W]ith only interpreters present, Xi had explained to Trump why he was basically building concentration camps in Xinjiang. According to our interpreter, Trump said that Xi should go ahead with building the camps, which Trump thought was exactly the right thing to do,” Bolton wrote in his Wall Street Journal piece, recounting an incident at the G-20 meeting in Osaka.
Trump had used the beginning of the meeting to make the case that there was “great hostility” toward China among Democrats, Bolton said. But Trump has also asked China to help him politically in public—calling on Beijing to investigate the family of his presidential reelection rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, during an October 2019 press conference on the White House’s South Lawn, based on business deals Biden’s son had struck in China. Trump’s earlier effort to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky into investigating the Bidens by allegedly withholding U.S. aid formed the basis for his impeachment late last year. He was acquitted in February.
In the book, Bolton is scornful of the House Democrats who impeached Trump over his behavior toward Ukraine, but he suggests that this is because they limited their inquiry to that controversy alone and tried to move too quickly for political reasons, according to an account in the New York Times. Bolton writes that the Democrats committed “impeachment malpractice” in part because they failed to look into other offenses such as Trump’s alleged effort to intervene in the probe into Turkey’s Halkbank and China’s ZTE.
The revelations could give a fresh batch of political ammunition to Biden, Trump’s 2020 Democratic rival, whose surrogates have castigated the president as reckless and dangerous to American democracy. But it’s unclear if Bolton’s tell-all would turn more Republican allies or Trump’s die-hard base of fans against him, given their unwavering support for the president through past scandals.
Trump has zeroed in on China during his presidential campaign, portraying himself as the best leader to stand up to Beijing amid the coronavirus pandemic that originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan. “One nation deserves the blame: China,” a recent Trump campaign ad said. “They lied about it, covered it up.” The pro-Trump America First Action PAC has released a slew of ads targeting the Democratic candidate as “Beijing Biden” after making a $10 million ad buy in the hotly contested states of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, all of which Trump won in 2016.
The White House has tried to block the publication of Bolton’s book, saying it includes classified information that should not be disclosed publicly. “This book is full of classified information, which is inexcusable. Former National Security Advisor John Bolton should know all too well that it’s unacceptable to have highly classified information from the government of the United States in a book that will be published,” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters on Wednesday.
Bolton’s lawyers and publishers have shot back, saying such claims are unfounded and detailing multiple rounds of clearance reviews Bolton went through with the White House to scrub classified information. They argue that Trump is using the excuse simply to block the publication of an unflattering book. The new revelations set up a new phase in the legal battle between the former national security advisor and White House; Trump has said Bolton should face “criminal problems” for disclosing classified information, and he asserted that “any conversation with me is classified.”
Bolton is the latest in a string of former senior Trump officials who have spoken out against the president. “Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us,” former Defense Secretary James Mattis said in a statement to Foreign Policy and other news outlets.


foreignpolicy--2020-06-17--Why Is China Downplaying Its Border Clash With India?

Why Is China Downplaying Its Border Clash With India ?
Welcome to Foreign Policy ’ s China Brief .
The highlights this week : Chinese media sidesteps the deadly clash at the border with India , parts of Beijing reenter coronavirus lockdown , and what to make of John Bolton ’ s revelations about Donald Trump and Xi Jinping .
If you would like to receive China Brief in your inbox every Wednesday , please sign up here .
The bloody clash between troops on the disputed India-China border , which claimed at least 20 Indian soldiers ’ lives and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dominating Indian headlines this week—even as Chinese state media downplays the country ’ s most deadly military action in decades .
The story has been relegated to fourth or fifth place in both Xinhua and the People ’ s Daily , which have led with President Xi Jinping ’ s phone call with his Ecuadorian counterpart and details of an upcoming China-Africa summit .
Weeks of clashes between Indian and Chinese troops culminated on Monday night in an angry meeting between patrols on a narrow ridge that grew into a brawl .
Chinese @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go unarmed to avoid escalation—but both sides turned to improvised weapons such as clubs , stones , and iron rods .
The conflict parallels clashes between Chinese troops and the Soviets in the late 1960s , when both armies used hand-to-hand weapons in brawls on the frozen river borders .
But then , retrieving the injured was relatively easy .
This time , 17 of the 20 killed on the Indian side died of their wounds or exposure to subzero temperatures in high-altitude terrain .
Indian media reports as many as 43 Chinese @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but that information is unreliable .
Why is China keeping quiet ?
India and China both have well-developed mythologies of national martyrdom in war , and the Indian soldiers who died are already filling that role .
But it seems unlikely that China will even release the names of the dead .
There is state hostility toward releasing any sensitive information—and especially for the opaque military .
As indicated by the lack of media coverage , Beijing wants to keep its options open—and it doesn ’ t want to be trapped by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could also be read as a sign of weakness , especially if the Chinese side really did come off worse .
Is further conflict likely ?
Both sides say they want to de-escalate , with each casting the other as the aggressor and refusing to pull back its own troops .
A wider conflict seems unlikely , given the range of crises both Beijing and New Delhi are facing—but this will permanently stain public feelings , especially on the Indian side .
For more on the roots of the crisis and where it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from yesterday , and read tomorrow ’ s South Asia Brief .
Beijing ’ s new lockdown .
Following an outbreak of coronavirus cases linked to the capital ’ s Xinfadi wholesale market , which supplies up to 80 percent of its fruit and vegetables , Beijing is back on high alert .
Twenty-nine xiaoqu—the vast housing complexes where most Beijingers live—are under full lockdown , and many residents have received a call from the local police asking if they ’ ve had any contact with the market .
Schools are closed , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are reinstituted across the city .
Subway transport has declined as anxiety grips the city once again .
Though the authorities expect more to come , Beijing has only seen 109 cases in its second wave—a fraction of the number of new cases in the United States every day .
But the capital is particularly sensitive given the presence of an elderly and vulnerable political leadership .
Two local officials have already been fired due to the outbreak , and the incident could endanger the career of Beijing Party Secretary Cai Qi , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s revelations .
Former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton makes a series of stunning claims about Trump ’ s attitude toward China in the Wall Street Journal .
Trump reportedly approved of Xi ’ s description of China ’ s concentration camps for Muslim ethnic minorities in Xinjiang and asked the Chinese president to help him win reelection .
Bolton depicts a bumbling president who fawned over Xi—calling him “ the greatest Chinese leader ” —and fumbled trade deal efforts .
It ’ s been obvious for a long time that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump were mistaken .
Whether Bolton ’ s revelations will shake their faith remains to be seen .
Peace process explodes .
There is private despair among Chinese diplomats following Pyongyang ’ s explosive provocations this week , including the destruction of the inter-liaison office with South Korea .
Pyongyang ’ s recalcitrance about economic and social reform has long baffled Chinese counterparts , who point to their own economic success as an example of what the country could achieve if it followed in China ’ s footsteps .
“ I don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” one Chinese academic who has had frequent contact with North Korean diplomatic delegations told me .
Xi promises debt cancellation .
At a Wednesday video meeting with a group of African leaders , Xi promised to cancel certain debts by the end of 2020 , responding to the leaders ’ earlier calls for easier post-pandemic conditions .
China is the biggest creditor for most African states , and it has taken flak in the past for so-called debt diplomacy that lets it seize vulnerable countries ’ assets .
The recent move @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the pandemic won ’ t slow down China ’ s Belt and Road ambitions .
American Express finally arrives .
American Express has become the first foreign payments processor allowed to process local currency transactions in China .
It ’ s a change that U.S. firms have pushed for years , but it is now likely too late to make any dent in China ’ s well-developed payment market .
At this point , the move is largely symbolic , representing one of the commitments Beijing made as part of the phase-one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in China ’ s financial market is likely to be both constrained and used as future leverage by Beijing globally .
For instance , Chinese authorities could threaten to kick Western firms out unless they shut down accounts used by dissidents or Uighurs abroad .
Rich people ’ s problems .
The market for luxury goods among Chinese consumers is struggling to recover post-pandemic , especially since it ’ s so dependent on foreign shopping .
In normal times , entire planeloads of Chinese tourists land in Milan every day for little reason @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stores .
Luxury spending has increased as Chinese switch from sweatpants to outdoor clothes once more , but it ’ s still below peak .
The importance of the Chinese market is also an indication of the fading impact of past anti-corruption campaigns , which once saw a 55 percent decline in purchases of luxury items—which could be signs of illicit graft .
After China defeated India in the 1962 Sino-Indian war , the Indian government commissioned a full-scale investigation into the failures by two of its senior officers , T.B .
Henderson @ @ @ @ @ @ @ buried the results .
However , the first half of the report was leaked in 2014 , and it remains available online .
It ’ s uncomfortable reading for many in India , even today : Issues such as poor communication , stiff hierarchies , and overconfidence persist in the Indian military-political establishment .
That ’ s it for this week .
We welcome your feedback at newsletters @ foreignpolicy.com .
You can find older editions of China Brief here .
For more from Foreign Policy , subscribe here or sign up for @ @ @ @

Welcome to Foreign Policy’s China Brief. The highlights this week: Chinese media sidesteps the deadly clash at the border with India , parts of Beijing reenter coronavirus lockdown , and what to make of John Bolton’s revelations about Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.
Welcome to Foreign Policy’s China Brief. The highlights this week: Chinese media sidesteps the deadly clash at the border with India, parts of Beijing reenter coronavirus lockdown, and what to make of John Bolton’s revelations about Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.
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How Many Chinese Soldiers Died in the Himalayas?
The bloody clash between troops on the disputed India-China border, which claimed at least 20 Indian soldiers’ lives and an unknown number of Chinese, is dominating Indian headlines this week—even as Chinese state media downplays the country’s most deadly military action in decades. The story has been relegated to fourth or fifth place in both Xinhua and the People’s Daily, which have led with President Xi Jinping’s phone call with his Ecuadorian counterpart and details of an upcoming China-Africa summit.
Weeks of clashes between Indian and Chinese troops culminated on Monday night in an angry meeting between patrols on a narrow ridge that grew into a brawl. Chinese and Indian patrols on the border customarily go unarmed to avoid escalation—but both sides turned to improvised weapons such as clubs, stones, and iron rods.
The conflict parallels clashes between Chinese troops and the Soviets in the late 1960s, when both armies used hand-to-hand weapons in brawls on the frozen river borders. But then, retrieving the injured was relatively easy. This time, 17 of the 20 killed on the Indian side died of their wounds or exposure to subzero temperatures in high-altitude terrain. Indian media reports as many as 43 Chinese deaths, supposedly based on intercepted transmissions, but that information is unreliable.
Why is China keeping quiet? India and China both have well-developed mythologies of national martyrdom in war, and the Indian soldiers who died are already filling that role. But it seems unlikely that China will even release the names of the dead. There is state hostility toward releasing any sensitive information—and especially for the opaque military. As indicated by the lack of media coverage, Beijing wants to keep its options open—and it doesn’t want to be trapped by public opinion calling for escalation. Deaths could also be read as a sign of weakness, especially if the Chinese side really did come off worse.
Is further conflict likely? Both sides say they want to de-escalate, with each casting the other as the aggressor and refusing to pull back its own troops. A wider conflict seems unlikely, given the range of crises both Beijing and New Delhi are facing—but this will permanently stain public feelings, especially on the Indian side. For more on the roots of the crisis and where it’s headed, see our explainer from yesterday, and read tomorrow’s South Asia Brief.
What We’re Following
Beijing’s new lockdown. Following an outbreak of coronavirus cases linked to the capital’s Xinfadi wholesale market, which supplies up to 80 percent of its fruit and vegetables, Beijing is back on high alert. Twenty-nine xiaoqu—the vast housing complexes where most Beijingers live—are under full lockdown, and many residents have received a call from the local police asking if they’ve had any contact with the market. Schools are closed, flights are cancelled, and temperature checks are reinstituted across the city. Subway transport has declined as anxiety grips the city once again.
Though the authorities expect more to come, Beijing has only seen 109 cases in its second wave—a fraction of the number of new cases in the United States every day. But the capital is particularly sensitive given the presence of an elderly and vulnerable political leadership. Two local officials have already been fired due to the outbreak, and the incident could endanger the career of Beijing Party Secretary Cai Qi, a high-flying ally of Xi.
Bolton’s revelations. Former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton makes a series of stunning claims about Trump’s attitude toward China in the Wall Street Journal. Trump reportedly approved of Xi’s description of China’s concentration camps for Muslim ethnic minorities in Xinjiang and asked the Chinese president to help him win reelection. Bolton depicts a bumbling president who fawned over Xi—calling him “the greatest Chinese leader”—and fumbled trade deal efforts.
It’s been obvious for a long time that China hawks who pinned their hopes on Trump were mistaken. Whether Bolton’s revelations will shake their faith remains to be seen.
Peace process explodes. There is private despair among Chinese diplomats following Pyongyang’s explosive provocations this week, including the destruction of the inter-liaison office with South Korea. Pyongyang’s recalcitrance about economic and social reform has long baffled Chinese counterparts, who point to their own economic success as an example of what the country could achieve if it followed in China’s footsteps. “I don’t know what they’re thinking,” one Chinese academic who has had frequent contact with North Korean diplomatic delegations told me.
Tech and Business
Xi promises debt cancellation. At a Wednesday video meeting with a group of African leaders, Xi promised to cancel certain debts by the end of 2020, responding to the leaders’ earlier calls for easier post-pandemic conditions. China is the biggest creditor for most African states, and it has taken flak in the past for so-called debt diplomacy that lets it seize vulnerable countries’ assets. The recent move is a considerable conciliation—but also a signal that the pandemic won’t slow down China’s Belt and Road ambitions.
American Express finally arrives. American Express has become the first foreign payments processor allowed to process local currency transactions in China. It’s a change that U.S. firms have pushed for years, but it is now likely too late to make any dent in China’s well-developed payment market. At this point, the move is largely symbolic, representing one of the commitments Beijing made as part of the phase-one trade deal. Any real American presence in China’s financial market is likely to be both constrained and used as future leverage by Beijing globally. For instance, Chinese authorities could threaten to kick Western firms out unless they shut down accounts used by dissidents or Uighurs abroad.
Rich people’s problems. The market for luxury goods among Chinese consumers is struggling to recover post-pandemic, especially since it’s so dependent on foreign shopping. In normal times, entire planeloads of Chinese tourists land in Milan every day for little reason other than to hit up the brand stores. Luxury spending has increased as Chinese switch from sweatpants to outdoor clothes once more, but it’s still below peak.
The importance of the Chinese market is also an indication of the fading impact of past anti-corruption campaigns, which once saw a 55 percent decline in purchases of luxury items—which could be signs of illicit graft.
What We’re Reading
The Henderson Brooks-Bhagat Report, 1962
After China defeated India in the 1962 Sino-Indian war, the Indian government commissioned a full-scale investigation into the failures by two of its senior officers, T.B. Henderson Brooks and P.S. Bhagat—and then promptly buried the results. However, the first half of the report was leaked in 2014, and it remains available online. It’s uncomfortable reading for many in India, even today: Issues such as poor communication, stiff hierarchies, and overconfidence persist in the Indian military-political establishment.
That’s it for this week.
We welcome your feedback at newsletters@foreignpolicy.com. You can find older editions of China Brief here. For more from Foreign Policy, subscribe here or sign up for our other newsletters.