New Delhi, June 23, 2020: China has been delivered another knockout punch by the USA.
The U.S. Secretary of State Department Mike Pompeo in the early hours today dubbed Chinese newspapers as ‘foreign missions’ and even called them PRC (People’s Republic China) propaganda outlets.
In a note for media that soon followed it made a damning note for Chinese ‘propaganda’ papers and also took a close and hard look at premier Xi Jinping saying that ‘over the past decade and particularly under General Secretary Xi Jinping’s tenure, the CCP has reorganized China’s state propaganda outlets disguised as news agencies and asserted even more direct control over them. ‘
The press note also highlighted Xi’s words that read “Party-owned media must. . . embody the party’s will, safeguard the party’s authority … their actions must be highly consistent with the party.”
State Department pointed the statement and said that ‘in short, while Western media are beholden to the truth, PRC media are beholden to the Chinese Communist Party.’
Following this, the press note said that from today onwards the US operations of China Central Television, China News Service, the People’s Daily, and the Global Times are to be seen as ‘foreign missions’.
Earlier, on February 18, 2020, the US has designated Xinhua News Agency, China Global Television Network, China Radio International, China Daily Distribution Corporation, and Hai Tian Development USA as foreign missions.
The State Department said that these ‘ nine entities all meet the definition of a foreign mission under the Foreign Missions Act, which is to say that they are “substantially owned or effectively controlled” by a foreign government.
In this case, they are effectively controlled by the government of the People’s Republic of China, said the press note.
In order to ensure greater transparency of CCP-run operations in the United States, I directed the designation of four additional PRC propaganda outlets as foreign missions.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) June 22, 2020
It however said that the decision to designate these entities is not based on any content produced ‘by these entities, nor does it place any restrictions on what the designated entities may publish in the United States.’
The press note said that the move is to ‘simply recognizes them for what they are and that the entities designated as foreign missions must adhere to certain administrative requirements that also apply to foreign embassies and consulates in the United States.’
This designation recognizes PRC propaganda outlets as foreign missions and increases transparency relating to the CCP and PRC government’s media activities in the United States, the statement said.
In short, the Chinese papers if found collecting national security information, savory or unsavory, may not be able to find cover under the garb of journalism.
The naming of Xi Jinping’s ‘tenure’ in the press note is another shot fired by the USA at the top leader of the Chinese Communist Party and this indeed is a development that won’t go unchallenged.
Meanwhile, Chinese ‘journalists’ are up in arms:
You better designate those just taken over by Bannon folks as propaganda machines.
— Chen Weihua （陈卫华） (@chenweihua) June 22, 2020
This is a very absurd decision. China-US relation is so tense that market-oriented media like the Global Times has been affected. It is regrettable. The US is losing self-confidence and inclusiveness. The country is chaotic. pic.twitter.com/NrMNI71rc8
— Hu Xijin 胡锡进 (@HuXijin_GT) June 23, 2020
China has picked up battles with nearly every one of its neighbors including Japan, and India while the South China Sea has been on a boil as well.
