LONDON (HPD) — The head of Britain’s cyber-espionage agency on Tuesday accused China of using its economic and technological clout to oppress at home and exert control abroad, saying Beijing’s aggressive strategy is based on fear. and poses “an enormous threat to all of us.”
The communist authorities in Beijing aspire to “shape the global technological ecosystem” with technologies such as digital currencies and satellite systems, to control the Chinese population and gain influence around the world, said Jeremy Fleming, director of GCHQ.
In a rare public address scheduled for later Tuesday at the Royal United Services Institute think tank, Fleming was scheduled to say that China’s one-party system seeks to control the Chinese population and sees other countries as “either potential adversaries or potential states.” clients to be threatened, bribed or coerced”.
“Underlying that belief is a sense of fear,” the prepared speech stated.
“And we see that fear playing out in the manipulation of the technological ecosystems that support our daily lives, from surveilling their own citizens and restricting freedom of expression to influencing financial systems and new domains,” the speech added, according to excerpts published with advance.
Relations between Britain and China have become increasingly tense in recent years, with British authorities accusing Beijing of economic subterfuge and human rights abuses.
British spies have made increasingly negative reports about Beijing’s influence and intentions. Richard Moore, head of the foreign intelligence agency MI6, last year described China as one of the biggest threats to Britain and its allies.
Specifically, Fleming would warn that China intends to fragment the internet infrastructure to gain control. He also that she tries to use the digital currencies used by central banks to spy on foreign transactions and avoid future international sanctions such as those that have been imposed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
Fleming’s speech also referred to China’s BeiDou satellite system, an alternative to popular GPS navigation technology, noting that it could contain “a powerful anti-satellite capability, with a doctrine of denying other nations access to space in the event of an attack.” conflict”.
GCHQ, officially known as Government Communications Headquarters, is one of the three main British intelligence agencies, along with MI5 and MI6.