A lengthy investigative report on China aired on France 2 at the end of February, titled: “Aggressive China,” which examined how China has recently gone on the offensive in the international arena, occupying leadership positions in several international organizations and using the opening of Confucius Institutes to export Chinese political propaganda to the West, featured how the Beijing government has used multiple channels to infiltrate various areas of France, questioning whether political figures holding state office, such as former French Prime Minister Francois Raffarin, are defending China or serving the interests of France.
The report points out that in the year since the outbreak, it was expected that China would be overwhelmed by the virus, but the opposite has happened: while the West has been mired in the New Guinea Epidemic, China’s economy has been the only one to grow at a rate of 2.3%. Not only that, but Beijing is also trying to dominate international public opinion, with Chinese diplomats known as “war wolves” on all sides, a proud and aggressive China is increasingly showing the world that it is trying to become the center of the world, and Europe, especially France, is a key step to this end. Who are the “Panda Frenchmen” in the service of China?
Who are the French pandas?
The report describes the French-Chinese Business Club, frequented by French politicians, where officials from the Chinese Embassy in France, as well as current and former French government officials such as former French Defense Minister Ariomarie, former French health Minister Dousteblache, and even former French intelligence chief Bernard Scouacini gather. The club’s leaders recently disclosed to BFM TV that former French President Nicolas Sarkozy should be the guest of honor at the club’s banquet to be held next month on March 8.
French public opinion is increasingly questioning the role of former government officials in their dealings with the Chinese. First among them is former Prime Minister Francois Raffarin, whom Beijing has described as “an old friend of the Chinese people. In 2019, Raffarin was awarded the Order of Friendship by Beijing, which has been bestowed on a handful of people with strong ties to Beijing, such as Russian President Vladimir Putin and Cuba’s current president, Raldo Castro, the report noted. In an interview with France 2, Raffarin said he was recognized as a close collaborator with China mainly because he had brought thousands of French companies to the country, saying he was not a diplomat and did not engage in diplomatic activities, but merely helped French companies enter the Chinese market. However, the report also noted that Raffarin, who is also the host of a program on the French-language version of China’s official TV channel, described a Chinese city one minute and praised sporting goods made in China the next, praising not only Chinese manufacturing but also flattering the Chinese government’s leader, claiming that Xi Jinping is a wise and visionary leader and that to govern a country of 1.4 billion people, one must use power. and that to govern a country of 1.4 billion people, one must use power. When asked if he was being used by Beijing, Raffarin replied, “He is being used by peace, his aim is to maintain relations between the two countries, because China is decidedly different from France both in terms of history and Culture and in terms of political institutions, China is a country with a 5,000-year history and the Chinese have no common values with us. ” Raffarin also defended his actions by saying that the diplomacy between the two countries has interests in addition to principles, and he believes it is vital to defend them. The report disclosed that in 2018, Raffarin had been summoned by French intelligence for his ties with China, although Raffarin himself denied it.
The former French ambassador to China, Jean-Pierre Ley, who referred to Frenchmen close to Beijing, such as Raffarin, as “French pandas,” argued that China, with its long cultural history, is undeniably fascinating, but should not be dismissive of the country’s brutal political system.
Apart from Raffarin, there are many other French pandas. Former French ministers Jean Louis Borloo and Jean Marie Le Guen are both members of the board of directors of the Chinese telecom giant huawei. When asked why he was involved in the Huawei Group, Jean Marie Le Guen replied that Huawei is a very good multinational group and that Huawei’s participation would enrich the European and French sources of goods. And not a word was said about the security risks Huawei might bring. As for why Huawei hired former French government personnel? According to French economist Stéphane Dubreuil, Huawei is the Chinese company with the best knowledge of French politics, hiring former politicians to open doors for it at all levels of government and employing the most efficient PR and pressure groups to have all the possible leverage to exert pressure. Huawei’s PR groups in France include Havas, Publicis and Patricia Goldman, the PR agency of former Minister Jean Marie Le Guen.
In addition to former government ministers, Huawei also employs high-priced staff within the government, with a French departmental staff member hired by Huawei specifically to liaise with the Elysee Palace, who, according to him, asks for daily access to the French president. What exactly is the relationship between Huawei and the Chinese government? In this regard, the report commented that it is important not to comment on this lightly, otherwise you will be sent to court.
French MEP Raphael Gluckmann commented on French political figures working for Beijing, such as Raffarin, saying, “How can a former government prime minister of France move around the world to defend China’s interests, especially when sometimes China’s interests clash with France’s?” , he added: “Greed and corruption have always posed a threat to democracy and political figures should choose between politics and working for Huawei, it is not possible to have both.”
French intelligence investigates Beijing’s infiltration methods
While the EU is launching an internal investigation into political figures with too close ties to Beijing, the French intelligence service (DGSI) is also closely tracking China-linked collectives and individuals, and has pursued several suspects.
French intelligence authored a secret six-page document in 2018 warning that France’s research sector faces a serious threat of theft from China. Chinese researchers have pledged to steal scientific information for Beijing, either voluntarily or under pressure, and the document specifically identifies the Brittany region in western France as a major target for Beijing. Brittany is France’s center for defense, telecommunications and marine biology research, and the paper notes that the Brittany-based company Ifremer, which researches marine resources, is of great interest to Beijing, which is trying to tap into the scientific results for future exploitation of the South China Sea.
Brittany opened the first Confucius Institute in France, whose Chinese teachers come from the Hanban office in China and sign a one-size-fits-all work contract before they go abroad, not to talk about sensitive issues such as Tibet, Taiwan and the Tiananmen Square incident. The Chinese leaders of the Confucius Institute refuse to be interviewed by foreign media. The Confucius Institute’s library is filled with selected magazines. French human rights organizations expose Confucius Institutes as interfering with the French Education sector and call for the closure of all Confucius Institutes in France. In addition to the Confucius Institutes in France, the report describes how the Confucius Institutes in Europe, especially in Brussels, have become a stronghold for officials looking to recruit people to work for Beijing.
How Beijing bought Hollywood
In 2012, China’s Wanda Group bought the AMC film business chain for $2.6 billion; in 2016, Wanda bought Legandary, the famous Batman studio, for $3.5 billion; and in 2017, the famous Paramont studio sold a quarter of its shares to a Chinese state company. A quarter of the shares of Paramont Studios were sold to a Chinese state-run company, and through the aforementioned financial investment, Beijing is attempting to take control of the control over Hollywood films.
Chris Fenton, a Hollywood producer who has worked with the Chinese for more than a decade, recently released a new book, “Feeding the Dragon,” which reveals how Hollywood producers and actors have been pressured by Beijing to make concessions. According to him, the first consideration for Hollywood producers is whether the film will stand up to censorship, and all films dealing with issues such as Tibet and human rights cannot be made if they try to be shown in China. Hollywood star Richard Gir has been ostracized for his close ties to the Dalai Lama. He said the storyline of today’s film would have to be censored by Beijing.
Pen Americain, an American NGO, condemned Hollywood for consciously filtering its footage to meet Beijing’s censorship standards, removing any content that might upset Beijing, such as Taiwan’s or Japan’s flags.
The report also points out that more and more leadership positions in UN agencies are occupied by Beijing. Finally, the Chinese Ambassador to France, Lu Shano, responded to a French TV2 reporter on these issues. On the subject of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, Lu Shano replied with a calm face that the Uyghurs in China live in peace and happiness.
Link to France 2’s report.
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