United Front Work Department: What Is China’s ‘Magic Weapon’ Caught In Prince Andrew Spy Row? – News18

Last Updated:December 19, 2024, 19:59 IST

The story of businessman Yang Tengbo, or alleged spy “H6”, has put into focus how Chinese espionage functions overseas, especially in a world grappling to thwart security threats from the Asian giant

The alleged Chinese spy, who cultivated close ties with Prince Andrew of the British royal family, was working on behalf of the United Front Work Department – an arm of the Chinese Communist Party used to influence foreign entities, as per British authorities.

The story of businessman Yang Tengbo, or “H6″, has put into focus how Chinese espionage functions overseas, especially in a world grappling to thwart security threats from the Asian giant.

As for the United Kingdom, this is now the most high-profile case in a series of espionage scandals in recent years that involved suspected or confirmed Chinese intelligence-gathering in its establishment, including in Parliament.

In 2022 British intelligence officials warned politicians that Christine Lee, a British-Chinese lawyer, had been seeking to improperly influence members of Parliament for years. A parliamentary researcher was arrested in 2023 on suspicion of providing sensitive information to China.

WHAT IS THE UNITED FRONT WORK DEPARTMENT?

Described as a “magic weapon” by Mao Zedong, the founder of The People’s Republic of China, the current president of the United Front Work Department (UFWD) is China’s leader Xi Jinping.

Though it deals in the world of shadows, the work of UFWD is decades-old and well-documented. It has often shown up in spy scandals around the world with countries accusing Beijing of using them for foreign interference. Like this time with Yang Tengbo in Britain, Beijing has always denied all espionage allegations calling them ludicrous.

In 2022, the director of MI5, Britain’s domestic intelligence, described aims of United Front as buying and exerting influence, amplifying pro-China voices and silencing those critical of the Chinese government’s authority.

According to a report published by The Week, it has its origins in the Soviet and its work is inspired by the Leninist theory of “uniting with lesser enemies to defeat greater ones”. Its first incarnation came about in the 1920s, to attempt to join and subvert the then-ruling Nationalist government, the Kuomintang.

China, which has always had ambitions of gaining a deep state-like influence, has been able to achieve it through UFWD work in recent decades. Back home, with its help, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been highly successful in neutralising large-scale or open political opposition.

“Influence” is its main game, be it local or at an international level. According to the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), it is tasked with carrying out such activities locally and abroad. While it mainly deals with political threats domestically, its operations focus on the successful push of the Chinese agenda and interests in the global arena when it comes to overseas missions.

Beijing’s UFWD has a force of at least 40,000. It has four subordinate offices and nine specialised bureaus – each deals with a targeted group such as China’s eight officially-approved non-communist political parties, ethnic minorities, and Chinese communities overseas, as per The Week report.

The report said Xi, however, has also tasked it with cultivating the loyalty of the Uyghur Muslims and keeping a check on the Chinese middle class. “Today, United Front-related organizations are playing an increasingly important role in China’s broader foreign policy under Chinese President and General Secretary of the CCP Xi Jinping,” the USCC report was quoted.

BACKSEAT NO MORE, XI’S VERSION NOW

Zedong had hailed UFWD – originally referring to a broad communist alliance – as the key to the Communist Party’s triumph in the decades-long Chinese Civil War.

While it took a backseat after the war ended in 1949, it has seen a renaissance in the last decade under Xi. According to a report published by the BBC, his version is broadly consistent with earlier incarnations: “to build the broadest possible coalition with all social forces that are relevant”, as per Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund.

The BBC report said the United Front has a website, where you can see reports of a number of its activities. But, Dr Ohlberg was quoted as saying that “a key target that has been defined for United Front work is overseas Chinese”.

From the Taiwan issue to the suppression of ethnic minorities in Tibet and Xinjiang, it is all about narrative control when it comes to UFWD work. “United Front work can include espionage but [it] is broader than espionage,” Audrye Wong, assistant professor of politics at the University of Southern California, told the BBC.

“Beyond the act of acquiring covert information from a foreign government, United Front activities centre on the broader mobilisation of overseas Chinese,” she was quoted, adding that China is “unique in the scale and scope” of such influence activities.

(With agency inputs)

Location :

London, United Kingdom (UK)