Chinese government agents are operating secretly in the U.S.to pressure influential expatriates, some wanted in China on charges of corruption, to return home, the New York Times reported Sunday, citing anonymous American officials.
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Most of the targets of the Chinese program called “Operation Fox Hunt” were allegedly fugitives.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to make his first state visit to the US next month as the countries seek to resolve tensions over such issues as trade, human rights and hacking.
The report went on to say the US State Department had also issued a warning against the agents’ activities.
The newspaper cited Ministry of Public Security figures that more than 930 suspects worldwide had been repatriated under the programme since past year.
Their strong-arm tactics include threats to family members, and have increased in recent months. In the years after the September 11, 2001, attacks, the C.I.A. dispatched teams overseas to snatch Qaeda suspects and spirit them either to secret C.I.
The administration has reminded the Chinese government, with which the United States has no extradition treaty, that any attempt to repatriate alleged fugitives should be conducted through proper U.S. legal channels.
Chinese news media previously reported that the government has sent scores of security agents overseas to “persuade” their targets to return home.
US officials did not disclose the identities or numbers of those being sought by the Chinese in the United States.
Experts who have examined the names of China’s top 100 fugitives tell the Times that they don’t believe those listed are truly high-priority criminals, but are rather targeted by Beijing for so-called “political crimes”.
However, the officials declined to discuss specific activities by the agents. While James R. Clapper Jr., the director of national intelligence, initially said that “you have to kind of salute the Chinese for what they did”, he avoided repeating that accusation when pressed again in public on the matter.
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The warning was delivered in the past several weeks through diplomatic channels. American officials are increasingly frustrated by Chinese policy, such as China’s crackdown on civil liberties and the devaluation of its currency.
