May 26, 2020
Converging Chinese and Russian Disinformation Compounds Threat to Democracy
In recent weeks the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) propaganda and disinformation blitz around COVID-19 has drawn increasing attention, and with good reason. In addition to promoting a narrative about Beijing’s global leadership around the pandemic, the Chinese government has adopted Russian disinformation tactics in promoting conspiracy theories purporting that COVID-19 originated in Europe, the United States, and beyond to distract from its failed initial response to contain the outbreak from spreading beyond Wuhan.
Several accounts of China’s information operations have noted the incorporation of Russian disinformation tactics. Yet the full significance of this development cannot be understood without appreciating the broader alignment between Russia and China. In other words, China’s adoption of Russian information operation techniques is about more than “authoritarian learning,” or the passive diffusion of such practices from one authoritarian regime to the next. Instead, Russia and China are deepening ties and increasing coordination on a range of economic, defense, technological, and political issues. These repeated interactions facilitate an intentional sharing of best practices and are building a foundation for sustained cooperation moving forward.
Read the full article from the National Endowment for Democracy's Power 3.0 blog.
More from CNAS
-
Sharper: The Authoritarianism Challenge
Commentary
Autocratic leadership is on the rise globally. Even in democratic nations, leaders are eroding checks on their power and weakening institutions. The use of illiberal technolog...
By Anna Pederson
-
Can Ukraine’s Military Keep Winning?
Commentary
Ukraine’s military has undergone a radical transformation over the past eight years, thanks to intensive reorganization and reform efforts and billions of dollars in Western s...
By Margarita "Rita" Konaev & Polina Beliakova
-
Is Russia Better Off Without Putin? The Answer is Changing.
Commentary
To figure out whether we would be better off without Putin, though, we first need to weigh something else: How would Putin’s departure from power affect Russia? Would a leader...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Erica Frantz
-
A closer look at some of Russia's military failures in the war on Ukraine
Podcast
NPR's A Martinez speaks with Jeff Edmonds about what Russia's invasion of Ukraine says about its military power at large. Listen to the full conversation from NPR....
By Jeffrey Edmonds
