One Year After Afghanistan, Spy Agencies Pivot Toward China – By Nomaan Merchant (Associated Press) / Aug 8, 2022
WASHINGTON — In a recent closed-door meeting with leaders of the agency’s counterterrorism center, the CIA’s No. 2 official made clear that fighting al-Qaida and other extremist groups would remain a priority — but that the agency’s money and resources would be increasingly shifted to focusing on China.
One year after ending the war in Afghanistan, President Joe Biden and top national security officials speak less about counterterrorism and more about the political, economic and military threats posed by China as well as Russia. There’s been a quiet pivot within intelligence agencies, which are moving hundreds of officers to China-focused positions, including some who were previously working on terrorism.
Intelligence officials stress that the counterterrorism fight is hardly being ignored. Just a week ago it revealed a CIA drone attack killed al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri in Kabul. But days later, China staged large-scale military exercises and threatened to cut off contacts with the U.S. over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. It underscored the message CIA deputy director David Cohen had delivered at that meeting weeks ago: the agency’s top priority is trying to understand and counter Beijing.
The U.S. has long been alarmed by China’s growing political and economic ambitions. China has tried to influence foreign elections, mounted campaigns of cyber and corporate espionage, and detained millions of minority Uyghurs in camps. Some experts also think Beijing will in coming years try to seize the self-ruled democratic island of Taiwan by force.
