December 5, 2020 2:48:28 pm
Chinese soldiers marching during the opening ceremony of the Sixth India-China Joint Training Exercise Hand-to-Hand Exercise 2016 at the parade field of Aundh Military Camp on Wednesday. Arul Horizon Express Photography, 11-16-2016, Pune
China has tested members of its military with the goal of creating a legion of biologically enhanced soldiers, the US national intelligence chief said in a recent Wall Street Journal editorial.
President Donald Trump’s Director of National Intelligence, John Ratcliffe, warned that China “today represents the greatest threat to the United States.” “The intelligence is clear: Beijing intends to dominate the United States and the rest of the planet economically, militarily and technologically,” he wrote in the Wall Street Journal.
DNI Ratcliffe says @CBS_Herridge that China is using blackmail, bribery, and covert influence to attack members of Congress and ensure that “only pro-China laws are passed” pic.twitter.com/3hQ23hXvtF
– Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) December 3, 2020
“Many of China’s major public initiatives and prominent companies offer only a cloak of camouflage to the activities of the Chinese Communist Party,” he said. Ratcliffe added that China has done everything possible to turn his vision into reality.
“US intelligence shows that China has even conducted human tests on members of the People’s Liberation Army in hopes of developing soldiers with biologically enhanced capabilities,” he wrote, stating that there are “no ethical limits” to Beijing’s quest for power.
Ratcliffe’s editorial comes amid growing tensions between the two superpowers. President Trump has repeatedly blamed China for the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which originated in Wuhan. The Trump administration also imposed tariffs on Chinese goods and accused Beijing of property theft.
Earlier this week, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying accused the United States of “launching several oppressive political campaigns against China.” He said this arose “from a strong ideological bias and a strategy to contain China.”
In his editorial, Ratcliffe said analysts and officials at the country’s intelligence agency may have to change their approach to Russia and counterterrorism efforts. “Today we must look with clear eyes at the facts before us, which make it clear that China should be the main focus of US national security in the future,” he wrote.
Ratcliffe’s position will soon be filled by Avril Haines, chosen by President-elect Joe Biden to the top post of the National Intelligence Agency. Aides previously served as deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
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