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Chinese State Media Mocks US Election as ‘Battle of Five Presidents’ While Analysts Warn of Propaganda Motives

On the eve of the US presidential election, China’s state television CCTV posted a topic on Weibo about “Five US Presidents in a Chaos Battle,” which quickly became a trending topic. Chinese netizens reacted to the post with mockery and criticism of the US electoral system by Chinese netizens. The five presidents mentioned in the post were Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Barak Obama, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter, all of whom were politically active during this last election cycle.

CCTV’s post described President Biden as “out,” Trump as “nearly physically eliminated due to assassination attempts,” and claimed former presidents Obama, Clinton, and Carter were “interfering” (in the election cycle), turning the election into a “battle of five kings.” The post garnered 150 million views and sparked extensive discussion.

Chinese social media users criticized the US election process, with some describing it as lacking civility and democratic atmosphere, comparing it to a marketplace quarrel or gang fight. The topic “#USElection” attracted nearly 15.3 billion views on Weibo.

Analysts note that this coverage is part of China’s internal propaganda strategy to shape public opinion against the US democratic system. An anonymous source from Chongqing stated that Chinese state media regularly crafts anti-US narratives to control public opinion while avoiding any mention of internal political conflicts within the CCP.

Dr. Du Shengcong, a media expert from Taiwan’s Ming Chuan University, describes the Weibo post as “gaseous language” – low-brow statements meant to reach mass audiences. He said that “state media should be more responsible in their reporting” to avoid misinterpretation. He noted,
despite pre-election chaos, US democratic institutions continue to function normally after elections.”

Source: Voice of America, November 5, 2024
https://www.voachinese.com/a/cctv-paints-the-us-elections-in-a-bad-light/7852130.html

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Lianhe Zaobao: Chinese Military Developed AI Tools Based on Meta’s AI Models

Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported that, in a paper published in June this year, six Chinese military researchers detailed how they used an early version of Meta’s Llama large language model (LLM) to build their ChatBIT model. These researchers named on the publication are from the Military Scientific Information Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences, the National Defense Science and Technology Innovation Institute, the Beijing Institute of Technology, and the Minzu University of China.

The Chinese researchers utilized the Llama 2 13B large-scale language model released by Meta in February 2023. Combined with their own parameters, they built a military-focused artificial intelligence tool for collecting and processing intelligence to provide accurate and reliable information for combat decision-making. The paper states that, after fine-tuning, ChatBIT was optimized for question-and-answer tasks in the military field and that its performance exceeded other artificial intelligence models.

Reportedly, the Chinese models are approximately 90 percent as capable as OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4. The Chinese researchers did not elaborate on how they measured performance or on whether the AI model is already in use in the field.

Meta has publicly released many AI models, including Llama, and has imposed licensing restrictions on the use of these models. Specifically, Meta prohibits the use of its models for “military, war, nuclear industry and espionage.” Meta’s public policy director Molly Montgomery said “Any use of our model by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army is unauthorized and violates our acceptable use policy.”

A fierce debate is ongoing in the U.S. national security and technology community over the consequences of technology companies such as Meta making their models public.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, November 1, 2024
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/china/story20241101-5283840

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology US-China Relations

RFI Chinese: TSMC Stops Supplying China’s SOPHGO

Radio France Internationale (RFI) Chinese Edition recently reported that TechInsights, a technology research company, discovered TSMC chips when disassembling Huawei’s Ascend 910B processor (which contains multiple chips). TSMC notified the United States after learning of the news. The chips ordered from TSMC by Chinese company SOPHGO are consistent with the chips found in Huawei’s Ascend 910B multi-chip processor. To protect U.S. national security, Huawei was banned from purchasing this technology. TSMC decided to stop supply after discovering that the chips supplied to this customer were ultimately used in Huawei products.

The U.S. Department of Commerce said it was aware of reports of possible violations of U.S. export control regulations but did not comment on whether there were related investigations underway. SOPHGO, which is affiliated with cryptocurrency mining equipment manufacturer Bitmain, did not respond to a request for comment. Huawei did not respond to a request for comment either. TSMC declined to comment.

Source: RFI Chinese, October 26, 2024
https://tinyurl.com/2uwaw84r

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology US-China Relations

Xinhua Commentary: US Trade Restrictions Have Ruined ASML and the Global Industrial Chain

Xinhua News Agency published a commentary on ASML’s recent drop in stock price. Below are some key excerpts from the article.

Due to lower-than-expected orders and a downgraded performance outlook, Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML recently experienced a sharp decline in its stock price, losing its title as Europe’s most valuable tech company. Many market analysts believe that U.S. restrictions are key drivers behind ASML’s drop in orders, asserting that U.S. hegemonic actions are detrimental to global industrial development and free trade.

It is a common tactic for the U.S. to use “national security” as a pretext to suppress foreign companies and “sanctions” to maintain its competitiveness. The U.S. presents itself as a “defender of free trade,” but it follows “market rules” at will. When leading in technology and holding a strong market position, it champions “free competition.” When other nations make significant technological advances that could challenge its economic and technological dominance, it disregards “market rules,” instead resorting to extreme measures and forming alliances to relentlessly suppress foreign enterprises, including those of its allies.

In the 1980s, when Japan’s high-tech sector posed a challenge to the U.S., the U.S. imposed anti-dumping tariffs and sanctioned companies like Toshiba. The U.S. “long-arm jurisdiction” tactics dismantled prominent French manufacturer Alstom. Targeting India’s steel, Canada’s lumber, and Brazilian agricultural products, the U.S. has employed a range of non-market strategies. It also adds more foreign companies to export control lists and enacts the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, to attract more semiconductor and renewable energy firms to invest and build facilities in the U.S., and block other countries’ products from entering the U.S. market. The U.S. has also targeted electric vehicles (EVs), imposing a 100 percent tariff on Chinese EVs and threatening to ban Chinese software and hardware in networked and autonomous vehicles on American roads. Recently, the U.S. government is even considering restricting sales of advanced AI chips to specific countries, particularly in the Gulf region. These policies severely disrupt business operations, hinder market expectations, and obstruct normal industry growth.

The U.S.’s “freedom” of arbitrarily wielding power comes at the cost of the “unfreedom” faced by ASML and other international companies.

Source: Xinhua, October 19, 2024
http://www.news.cn/20241019/1c9f5f13984e4e63bfbbad7171992f3c/c.html

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources US-China Relations

RFI Chinese: Poll Shows Americans’ Favorability Towards China Hits Record Low

Radio France Internationale (RFI) Chinese Edition recently reported that, Chicago Council on Global Affairs just released its new poll results on China favorability. Poll questions are rated from 0 to 100, and the average score was 26, down from 32 in 2022 – the lowest since the organization began conducting surveys in 1978, before the United States and China established diplomatic relations. However, Americans do not want the competition between the two countries to turn into war. The American public’s primary concern for bilateral relations is to avoid military conflicts.

More than half (56 percent) of Americans surveyed believe that trade between the two countries weakens U.S. national security, and 79 percent support banning U.S. companies from selling sensitive high-tech products to China, up from 71 percent three years ago. Around 55 percent of Americans currently support increasing tariffs on Chinese products, down from 62 percent in 2021. Even as the U.S. political situation becomes increasingly polarized, data shows that surveyed Republicans and Democrats are consistent in their negative attitudes toward China. However, the two parties differ on how to formulate policies to deal with the threat from China.

Source: RFI Chinese, October 25, 2024
https://tinyurl.com/5sp87c67

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

CCP Leverages U.S. Legal System to Counter U.S. – Trying to Stop Sanctions and Criticism

Voice of America (VOA) reported that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is leveraging the U.S. legal system, using the law as “both a sword to attack opponents and a shield to protect its interests.”

Chinese drone manufacturer DJI filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) on October 18, alleging that DOD’s inclusion of the company on the list of companies cooperating with Beijing’s military was erroneous and had caused significant financial losses. China’s semiconductor firm, AMEC, filed a similar lawsuit in the U.S. on August 16. Previously, Chinese companies Xiaomi and Hesai successfully removed themselves from the list by suing DOD. Analysts told VOA that these Chinese companies’ success was not due to a lack of military involvement, but because they exploited loopholes in the U.S. Administrative Procedure Act.

In addition, the CCP can use its state power and resources to hire top-tier U.S. law firms to start legal battles to coerce or even silence organizations or individuals from criticizing it.

Li Rui, Mao Zedong’s former secretary and a senior member of the CCP, left behind diaries detailing the inner workings of the party and his own views. According to his wishes, his daughter, Li Nanyang, handed over the diaries to the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in California. However, Li Rui’s widow, Zhang Yuzhen, filed a lawsuit in Beijing in April 2019 to reclaim the diaries (so that she could take them back to China) and won the case. Stanford University filed a countersuit in the U.S. This ongoing legal battle has lasted for over five years and required Stanford, Li Nanyang, and her attorney’s law firm to spend thousands of hours. Zhang Yuzhen hired four different law firms, three of which are among the largest in the U.S. Li Nanyang’s attorney pointed out that Zhang would not be able to hire those U.S. attorneys on her own, which Zhang neither confirmed nor denied.

Anna Puglisi, a former senior fellow at Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, published a scholarly paper in May 2024 titled “How China’s Hybrid Economy Distorts Competition.” The paper highlighted the CCP’s direct or indirect relationship with companies like BGI Genomics and MGI Tech, and how China uses market access to protect its own global companies and undermine other global players. In June and July of this year, Puglisi received letters from prominent U.S. law firms hired by BGI and MGI, accusing her of defamation and demanding that she and Georgetown University retract the paper and cease related analysis.

In May 2019, Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a nonprofit based in Washington, testified during a congressional hearing on transportation and infrastructure, stating that BYD and CRRC, two Chinese companies, are state-owned and state-supported, and had begun securing lucrative contracts funded by U.S. taxpayers to provide rail transit vehicles and electric buses for major U.S. cities. He warned that this trend would systematically undermine the competitive landscape of the U.S. locomotive and vehicle manufacturing industries. BYD filed a defamation lawsuit against AAM and several of its employees. The lawsuit dragged on for nearly two years, with several dismissals and unsuccessful appeals, until October 2022, when the Supreme Court refused to hear BYD’s appeal, ruling that BYD failed to prove that AAM’s statements were defamatory. However, the chilling effect of the lawsuit became apparent when AAM’s insurance company, Hartford, partially canceled AAM’s insurance in April 2021.

Source: VOA, October 23, 2024
https://www.voachinese.com/a/ccp-us-law-repression-20241020/7817608.html

Briefings | | |   @CS US-China Relations

Xinhua Commentary: US Struggles in Rebuilding Its Manufacturing Industry

Xinhua News Agency published a commentary on the U.S.’ failing to integrate global warming efforts in bringing manufacture businesses back to China.

Recently, Boeing announced plans to cut approximately 17,000 jobs globally, which stands in stark contrast to the high demand for global aviation manufacturing. This incident reflects several issues within American manufacturing: high labor costs, a shortage of skilled technical workers, and supply chain disruptions.

Since the 1960s, the offshoring of U.S. manufacturing has sparked widespread discussion about America’s “deindustrialization.” To address this problem, following the 2008 global financial crisis, various policies were introduced to revitalize the manufacturing industry, from Obama’s “reindustrialization” to Trump’s “America First” and now Biden’s “supply chain resilience” policy.

During this process, the U.S. has pursued protectionist trade policies and “long-arm jurisdiction” measures to forcibly bring manufacturing back. These actions have led to rising production costs, pressure on fiscal expenditure, high inflation, and damage to the supply chain, resulting in further decline of already hollowed-out industries.

According to a recent survey by the Financial Times, over two years into the Biden administration’s ambitious plan to reshore manufacturing, many projects, particularly in the clean technology and semiconductor sectors, are struggling to get off the ground.

Source: Xinhua, October 17, 2024
http://www.xinhuanet.com/20241017/b99368fad2d74d4b856b4e647b3bbaff/c.html

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations