Economic uncertainties after Brexit could make the UK more vulnerable to Chinese interference, with Beijing using a variety of means to infiltrate Britain’s power structures, a leading think-tank has warned. There has been little focus in Britain on how China preys on targeted countries and there is a need for a cohesive programme to counter
Economic uncertainties after Brexit could make the UK more vulnerable to Chinese interference, with Beijing using a variety of means to infiltrate Britain’s power structures, a leading think-tank has warned.
There has been little focus in Britain on how China preys on targeted countries and there is a need for a cohesive programme to counter it, according to a report by the Royal United Services Institute, which charts the tactics used by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to achieve its aims.
The report examines the “concerted strategy” allegedly used by Beijing, ranging from spreading surreptitious technological reach through mega-corporations like Huawei, to the “elite capture” of people in important positions and opinion-formers by the placing of “advisers”.
Join Independent Minds
For exclusive articles, events and an advertising-free read for just
£5.99
€6.99
$9.99
a month
Get the best of The Independent
With an Independent Minds subscription for just
£5.99
€6.99
$9.99
a month
Most western European states have resisted Beijing’s efforts to join China’s “Belt and Road” scheme which has been used, say critics, to spread economic and political hegemony in parts of Asia and Africa.
But the UK, seeking post-Brexit trade, has agreed to join the controversial initiative with David Cameron leading a $1bn private fund, supported by the British government.
1/8 Post-Brexit immigration
workers sorting radishes on a production line at a farm in Norfolk. One possible post-Brexit immigration scheme could struggle to channel workers towards less attractive roles – while another may heighten the risk of labour exploitation, a new report warns.
PA
2/8 Customs union
A key point in the negotiations remains Britain’s access to, or withdrawal from, the EU customs union. Since the referendum there has been hot debate over the meaning of Brexit: would it entail a full withdrawal from the existing agreement, known as hard Brexit, or the soft version in which we would remain part of a common customs area for most goods, as Turkey does?
No 10 has so far insisted that “Brexit means Brexit” and that Britain will be leaving the customs union, but may be inclined to change its position once the potential risks to the UK’s economic outlook become clearer.
Alamy
3/8 Northern Ireland-Irish border
Though progress was made last year, there has still been no solid agreement on whether there should be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
To ensure borderless travel on the island, the countries must be in regulatory alignment and therefore adhere to the same rules as the customs union.
In December, the Conservative Party’s coalition partners, the DUP, refused a draft agreement that would place the UK/EU border in the Irish Sea due to its potential to undermine the union.
May has promised that would not be the case and has suggested that a “specific solution” would need to be found.
Getty
4/8 Transition period
Despite protests from a small number of Conservative MPs, the Government and the EU are largely in agreement that a transitional period is needed after Brexit.
The talks, however, have reached an impasse. Though May has agreed that the UK will continue to contribute to the EU budget until 2021, the PM wants to be able to select which laws made during this time the UK will have to adhere to. Chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said the UK must adopt all of the laws passed during the transition, without any input from British ministers or MEPs.
EPA
5/8 Rights of EU citizens living the UK
The Prime Minister has promised EU citizens already living in the UK the right to live and work here after Brexit, but the rights of those who arrive after Brexit day remains unclear.
May insists that those who arrive during the transition period should not be allowed to stay, whereas the EU believe the cut-off point should be later.
Getty
6/8 Future trade agreement (with the EU)
Despite this being a key issue in negotiations, the Government has yet to lay out exactly what it wants from a trade deal with the EU.
Infighting within the Cabinet has prevented a solid position from being reached, with some MPs content that “no deal is better than a bad deal” while others rally behind single market access. The EU has already confirmed that access to the single market would be impossible without the UK remaining in the customs union.
Getty
7/8 Future trade agreements (internationally)
The Government has already begun trying to woo foreign leaders into prospective trade agreements, with various high profile state visits to China, India and Canada for May, and the now infamous invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit London.
However the UK cannot make trade agreements with another country while it is still a member of the EU, and the potential loss of trade with the world’s major powers is a source of anxiety for the PM. The EU has said the UK cannot secure trade deals during the transition period.
EPA
8/8 Financial services
Banks in the UK will be hit hard regardless of the Brexit outcome. The EU has refused to give British banks passporting rights to trade within the EU, dashing hopes of a special City deal.
However according to new reports Germany has suggested allowing trade on the condition that the UK continues paying into the EU budget even after the transition period.
Getty
1/8 Post-Brexit immigration
workers sorting radishes on a production line at a farm in Norfolk. One possible post-Brexit immigration scheme could struggle to channel workers towards less attractive roles – while another may heighten the risk of labour exploitation, a new report warns.
PA
2/8 Customs union
A key point in the negotiations remains Britain’s access to, or withdrawal from, the EU customs union. Since the referendum there has been hot debate over the meaning of Brexit: would it entail a full withdrawal from the existing agreement, known as hard Brexit, or the soft version in which we would remain part of a common customs area for most goods, as Turkey does?
No 10 has so far insisted that “Brexit means Brexit” and that Britain will be leaving the customs union, but may be inclined to change its position once the potential risks to the UK’s economic outlook become clearer.
Alamy
3/8 Northern Ireland-Irish border
Though progress was made last year, there has still been no solid agreement on whether there should be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
To ensure borderless travel on the island, the countries must be in regulatory alignment and therefore adhere to the same rules as the customs union.
In December, the Conservative Party’s coalition partners, the DUP, refused a draft agreement that would place the UK/EU border in the Irish Sea due to its potential to undermine the union.
May has promised that would not be the case and has suggested that a “specific solution” would need to be found.
Getty
4/8 Transition period
Despite protests from a small number of Conservative MPs, the Government and the EU are largely in agreement that a transitional period is needed after Brexit.
The talks, however, have reached an impasse. Though May has agreed that the UK will continue to contribute to the EU budget until 2021, the PM wants to be able to select which laws made during this time the UK will have to adhere to. Chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said the UK must adopt all of the laws passed during the transition, without any input from British ministers or MEPs.
EPA
5/8 Rights of EU citizens living the UK
The Prime Minister has promised EU citizens already living in the UK the right to live and work here after Brexit, but the rights of those who arrive after Brexit day remains unclear.
May insists that those who arrive during the transition period should not be allowed to stay, whereas the EU believe the cut-off point should be later.
Getty
6/8 Future trade agreement (with the EU)
Despite this being a key issue in negotiations, the Government has yet to lay out exactly what it wants from a trade deal with the EU.
Infighting within the Cabinet has prevented a solid position from being reached, with some MPs content that “no deal is better than a bad deal” while others rally behind single market access. The EU has already confirmed that access to the single market would be impossible without the UK remaining in the customs union.
Getty
7/8 Future trade agreements (internationally)
The Government has already begun trying to woo foreign leaders into prospective trade agreements, with various high profile state visits to China, India and Canada for May, and the now infamous invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit London.
However the UK cannot make trade agreements with another country while it is still a member of the EU, and the potential loss of trade with the world’s major powers is a source of anxiety for the PM. The EU has said the UK cannot secure trade deals during the transition period.
EPA
8/8 Financial services
Banks in the UK will be hit hard regardless of the Brexit outcome. The EU has refused to give British banks passporting rights to trade within the EU, dashing hopes of a special City deal.
However according to new reports Germany has suggested allowing trade on the condition that the UK continues paying into the EU budget even after the transition period.
Getty
Last year, 27 of the 28 EU-member-state ambassadors in Beijing (Hungary being the exception) signed off a report saying the Belt and Road project “runs counter to the European Union’s agenda for liberalising trade and pushes the balance of power in favour of subsidised Chinese companies”.
The British ambassador was one of the signatories. But Philip Hammond, on a subsequent visit to Beijing, declared: “I was privileged earlier this year to represent the UK at the first Belt and Road forum and one of the things we will discuss is the opportunity for closer collaboration in delivering the ambitions of the Belt and Road programme.”
The Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) report – “UK Vulnerable to Chinese Influence and Interference Operations” – calls for scrutiny of the “risk of financial dependencies being set up through consultancies offered to retired politicians, who the CCP hopes will push a sympathetic narrative.
“The case of former British prime minister David Cameron, who is involved in a large China fund which aims to invest $1bn in BRI projects, has gained some attention.
“The question of ‘elite capture’ by the CCP has not been closely examined. It should be, including the issue of how much time should elapse between government service and working for Chinese state or quasistate organisations.”
There is no suggestion in the report that the Chinese have tried to influence Mr Cameron.
The Rusi document, compiled by Charles Parton, a former diplomat, states: “The UK’s departure from the EU may increase the Chinese Communist Party’s desire to interfere, as it seeks to implement further a divide-and-rule strategy, aimed at imposing its global vision and promoting its interests”.
The report calls for the development of “systems to prevent non-transparent financing of political activities and lobbying by CCP-backed individuals and organisations; the ultimate donor should be clear, even when monies are channelled through British citizens.”
There are differences, on the whole, between the types of interference by the Kremlin and Beijing, according to the report.
“Except in the sphere of espionage and cyberattacks, CCP interference is not of the Russian kind, which is more deliberately hostile, even destructive. It is more subtle, incremental and often under the radar, although it is occasionally brazen.”
The main goal, it is held, is to promote a “ruthless advancement of China’s interests and values at the expense of those of the west, including through actions which encourage self-censorship and self-limiting policies”.
It points, as an example, to universities and research centres where “junior academics often self-censor to avoid having access to research opportunities withdrawn. Chinese interference in academic freedom also extends to putting pressure on academics, born in China and working in the UK to support the CCP line”.
There must be great caution, the report maintains, in allowing Chinese participation in the UK’s critical national infrastructure.
“Were there to be a decision in favour of allowing Chinese operator Huawei to offer fifth-generation mobile networks [5G] in the country it would be ‘at best naïve, at worst irresponsible. This is not least because [Chinese] national security laws require Huawei’s Chinese staff to accede to requests from government departments.”
The search for an optimistic post-Brexit future must not blind the UK to the risks involved, the report cautions. “The UK needs to realise that behind the enticing, but essentially meaningless, language of ‘win-win’ or ‘shared future for mankind’ lies a ruthless CCP agenda to advance its and China’s interests.”
“The UK will not change that, but its aim must be to channel it into a genuinely balanced relationship. In achieving that, language is important: if there must be talk of ‘the Golden Era’ (and within China, the phrase does help UK interests), the UK should not allow it to cloud its perceptions. The UK’s goal must be genuine reciprocity and an equal, mature and comprehensive relationship.”
We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view.
At The Independent, no one tells us what to write. That’s why, in an era of political lies and Brexit bias, more readers are turning to an independent source. Subscribe from just 15p a day for extra exclusives, events and ebooks – all with no ads.
Leave a Comment
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked with *