China takes foreign spy hostility to new levels; proactive strategy proposed for U.S.

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Spying and technology theft by Chinese intelligence operatives pose the most significant threat by hostile foreign spy services, according to a national counterintelligence strategy made public recently.

The threat is increasingly sophisticated and difficult to detect because of foreign spies’ use of high technology, the strategy states in a 24-page report released Thursday.

For the first time, the strategy calls for adopting “a strategic counterintelligence program” to disrupt or compromise foreign spies who work to damage U.S. national security before they can act.

The program will be conducted in the United States and against foreign intelligence activities overseas, the report said.

The approach is different from past efforts that were largely tactical and defensive in nature, such as reacting to spying operations after the activities were detected.

On the use of advanced spy technology, the report said the know-how is easy to operate, less expensive and available commercially, allowing sophisticated and less sophisticated spy networks to conduct aggressive activities.

“Adversaries are using cutting-edge technology — such as advanced cyber tools, biometric devices, unmanned systems, high-resolution imagery, enhanced technical surveillance equipment, commercial spyware and artificial intelligence (AI) — to further their espionage, counterespionage and influence missions,” the strategy said.

In addition to China, spies from Russia, Iran, North Korea and other foreign state and non-state groups seek to “cause grave harm to the United States, its people and institutions,” the report said.

China’s operations are “the most significant” among the foreign spy threats, the report said.

Adversaries’ spies also are increasing cooperation among their services, the report said.

Defending against these threats has become more complex, with a growing array of public and private targets and methods that include connected devices and remote platforms.

Counterintelligence is the task of identifying and neutralizing foreign spies operating as diplomats, business people, media representatives and other forms of cover.

The FBI is the United States’ lead domestic counterspy service and works with the CIA, which conducts counterintelligence abroad. The Defense Intelligence Agency at the Pentagon also is a counterspy service. Military services and other agencies also have counterintelligence elements.

Foreign spies have imposed large-scale damage to national security by penetrating agencies with spies and recruiting Americans to provide secrets.

Damaging spy cases since the 1980s and continuing through the 2020s include foreign-recruited traitors within the FBI, CIA, National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, Army, Navy and Air Force.

Counterintelligence services also are charged with protecting Americans at home and abroad from sabotage, assassination, or other intelligence activities and operations, the report said.

President Biden said in the report that the strategy will be used throughout the government to deter, detect and disrupt foreign spy activities.

“Foreign intelligence and security services and their proxies persist in seeking to acquire our most sensitive information, technology and intellectual property,” said Mr. Biden, noting that the new approach provides “strategic direction” to counterintelligence agencies.

The strategy was published after Tonya Wilkerson, the nominee to be the Pentagon’s senior policy official for counterintelligence, disclosed to Congress that U.S. counterintelligence agencies were shifting to an offensive, proactive posture in confronting foreign spy threats.

The new program seeks to “outmaneuver and constrain foreign intelligence entities, protect America’s strategic advantages, and invest in the future to develop the capabilities and resilience needed to meet the current threats and challenges and those to come,” the report said.

The report said foreign spy threats are unprecedented in breadth, volume, sophistication and impact.

FBI Director Christopher A. Wray has said the bureau conducted more than 2,000 investigations in recent years related to Chinese espionage and other intelligence operations.

The main Chinese intelligence services include the Ministry of State Security and the Ministry of Public Security, along with the intelligence units of the People’s Liberation Army.

Foreign spy activities include stealing secrets, sensitive data, intellectual property and technical and military capabilities. Spies also seek to disrupt U.S. foreign policy and intelligence operations.

A key threat is foreign intelligence services’ efforts to compromise or damage critical infrastructure in the United States, the report said. Foreign spy services are preparing for attacks against energy, communications, transportation and financial nodes.

“Their capabilities and pre-positioning efforts are increasing the risk of a large-scale disruption during periods of conflict or tension, which could include degraded military readiness, major economic losses, loss of life, or eroded confidence in key institutions,” the report said.

A targeted attack on critical infrastructure could cause billions of dollars in losses, the report said. Infrastructure disruptions in one sector could have cascading effects on others.

“Our adversaries’ efforts are likely aimed at influencing or coercing U.S. decisionmakers in a time of crisis by holding critical infrastructure at risk of disruption,” the report said.

China and Russia have been detected making cyber intrusions into the networks that control critical infrastructure, U.S. officials have said.

Foreign intelligence operations are attempting to influence American policies and to undermine democracy, the report said.

“These activities represent immediate threats to our national security, economic well-being, physical safety, democratic processes, and societal cohesion,” it stated.

The report said another problem is that many foreign intelligence activities are undetected despite counterspy efforts.

“To combat the expanding foreign intelligence threat more effectively, we need to know more about our adversaries’ plans, intentions, techniques, activities and vulnerabilities and better share that information with key decisionmakers,” the report said.

New strategic counterintelligence efforts will include more human, technical and open-source intelligence gathering on the range of spies and support networks.

Another goal is to go on the offensive against foreign spies through coordinated offensive activities defined as identifying, deceiving, exploiting and disrupting intelligence activities.

The strategy will expand defensive counterintelligence and make greater efforts to thwart cyberattacks and cyberespionage.

Regarding foreign influence activities, the new strategy calls for protecting democracy and undermining spies’ attempts to sow social tensions in the United States.

Additional measures will be taken to protect U.S. technology from theft.

“Countering the wide array of evolving threats will require a whole-of-society approach that increases coordinated actions by federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial governments and increases engagement and cooperation with our allies and partners — including the private sector, academia, and an informed public,” the report said.

The report urges all government departments and agencies to step up counterintelligence activities and resources.

Michelle Van Cleave, a former senior U.S. counterintelligence official, said the new strategy is well crafted but will be worthless unless agencies have the means to implement it.

“Ever since the Cold War ended, America’s CI resources have become an afterthought — and it shows,” she said.

“For example, the U.S. could not offer to trade Russian spies to secure the release of American hostages Putin was holding because — unlike our allies — the U.S. did not have any to trade.”

Ms. Van Cleave said Russian intelligence activities, along with those of the Chinese, Iranians and many other hostile powers, remain at disturbingly high levels.

“It remains to be seen whether the Biden administration and the Congress will create a strategic CI program — as the new strategy promises — and commit the resources needed to get the job done,” Ms. Van Cleave said.

The strategy was produced by the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

It includes a secret implementation plan directing specific actions and initiatives for agencies, the NCSC said in announcing the strategy.

Michael Casey, director of the center, said the new strategy will help counterspies to “outmaneuver and constrain foreign intelligence entities, protect America’s strategic advantages, and invest in the future to meet tomorrow’s threats.”

“Developed with our partners across the U.S. government, the strategy provides a comprehensive vision and direction for the [counterintelligence] community to address increasingly complex foreign intelligence threats,” he said in a statement.