CIA focus on China

It is an established fact that the Central Intelligence Agency has been an abject failure as far as conducting intelligence-based operations, upholding the rule of law or countering terrorism is concerned. Yet the agency’s latest shift towards tackling China alongside counter-terrorism in 2022 reveals a complete lack of strategic depth, wisdom, understanding or vision. In the latest meeting at the agency’s counter-terrorism centre, CIA officials spoke about channelizing the agency’s finances, resources and capital towards countering China. This bizarre reference exposes how American intelligence-based operations were never geared towards promoting sustainable peace, but are instead involved in subversive activities which undermine stability.

Perhaps, it is worthwhile for the agency to do some soul searching. Years of invading Afghanistan and conducting counter-terrorism operations could not prevent the country from descending into chaos in 2022 as terrorist activity remains rampant in the post US withdrawal era. In fact, the CIA could not locate the masterminds of global terrorist attacks through its intelligence based operations for decades and its activities in Afghanistan, Nicaragua, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo involved severe human rights violations, attempts at regime change and crass political engineering which dented its credibility on the international stage. The CIA’s legacy also demonstrates how the agency cannot be trusted given its controversial involvement in drug trafficking, propaganda dissemination, terrorist attacks and assassination of foreign leaders. With such a controversial historical profile, the CIA is in no position to treat China as a threat perception.

Yet despite this, after almost a year since the Afghanistan war ended, the Biden administration has focused less on counter-terrorism operations and more on political, military and economic threats from China. Hundreds of CIA officers are being moved to China focused positions despite Washington D.C’s claims of respecting state sovereignty and working towards peaceful cooperation with China. CIA Deputy Director David Cohen for example, claimed that the agency’s top priority was to understand and counter China despite the fact that the CIA itself is responsible for some of the world’s most heinous and controversial actions.

In Afghanistan, for example, it became notorious for supporting Islamist militants in the 1970s and funneling in billions of dollars of weapons in the country which contributed to domestic unrest. Additionally, it created black markets for weapons to arrive in regions ranging from the Middle East, Central Asia to Africa. During the senior George Bush era, from 1989 to 1993, the CIA supported right wing rebel movements in Latin America which contributed to domestic political tensions. Given the manner in which Afghanistan has been reeling from insecurity and chaos since America’s departure in 2022, the CIA cannot be absolved from promoting, perpetrating and committing some of the world’s most heinous crimes.

Hence, an increased focus on China will only result in the operationalization of nefarious strategies which undermine regional and global stability. The agency’s intelligence-based operations will only contribute to heightening of tensions particularly as US foreign policy in East Asia is in crisis. There is little appetite for confrontation or subversion as countries across the world treat Beijing as an economic and strategic partner. For an organization which has operated outside its charter on numerous historical occasions as revealed in the Rockefeller Commission and the Church Committee, targeting China will only cement its status as a rogue operative organization which damages America’s touted claims of being a champion of peace, security and sustainability.

The truth is that the CIA’s decision to couple counter-terrorism and China as priorities cannot absolve itself from its controversial history. The decision to counter China is also another addition to its controversial profile which is characterized by subversion, human rights violations and threats to global peace and stability. History is replete with such examples and to brandish controversial yardsticks and claim to uphold international norms of peace and stability is a futile exercise. The truth is that the CIA has promoted subversion in many places beyond China which includes Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nicaragua where many governments, both current and former, view their activities with suspicion. Cleaning the record would require monumental efforts which includes purging controversial officers and relegating them to subordinate tasks such as surveillance of borders. Terrorism continues to haunt the United States and its civilian and military infrastructure and it is worthwhile for some soul searching to take place.

Whether such soul searching does take place is open for debate. So far, the Biden administration has not budged on the controversial record that its premier intelligence agency boasts. In fact, by touting multilateralism, but employing a foreign policy which seeks to alienate countries and promote camp politics, the Biden administration is providing fertile ground for the CIA to conduct disruptive activities with impunity. This will only exacerbate tensions and contribute to ongoing animosities which undermines global peace.

Hence, the CIA has everything to lose by coupling terrorism with China. It is a threat to global peace.