US Accuses China of Election Interference, Tensions Escalate over Ukraine and South China Sea

China has been making attempts to influence and potentially interfere with the 2024 US elections, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken. During his diplomatic tour in China, he warned that any interference by Beijing would be “totally unacceptable” to Washington. The Chinese officials responded by claiming they have been unfairly suppressed and accused America of undermining their rise as a global power. Tensions between the two nations are high due to disputes over issues such as Russia’s war in Ukraine, China’s assertion of sovereignty over the South China Sea, and Beijing’s support for Moscow through exports of advanced technology that has helped ramp up its defense industrial base during Putin’s invasion. In contrast to Russian information operations aimed at destabilizing democracies around the world, Chinese officials have focused on promoting policies favourable to their country as well as supporting the CCP in other nations. The US is attempting to limit China’s access to high-end Western technology and reduce dependence on exports from Beijing due to growing international perceptions of China as a threat following its handling of COVID-19, which has sharpened tensions between Washington and Beijing. While Blinken expressed concerns about Chinese maritime manoeuvres in the region that could impact freedom of navigation and commerce for other nations including Japan’s allies, Wang Wenbin accused America of hypocrisy over its trade relations with Russia while providing aid to Ukraine during his Friday press conference. As Blinken met senior leaders in Beijing, China’s defence minister huddled with Russian and Iranian officials on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting in Astana, Kazakhstan where they discussed ways to enhance military cooperation and regional issues that require solutions through convergence between nations such as Iran and China. The dialogue could potentially dovetail with Tehran’s provision of weapons to Russia during the ongoing conflict against Ukraine. US officials are working on nurturing a lattice style network of relationships between allies in Indo-Pacific regions who have expressed misgivings over Chinese aggression due to Beijing’s claims to most of South China Sea, which has fueled tensions with Washington and its partners in the region. Blinken warned that if China continues supplying Russia’s war machine despite calls for action against more than a hundred Chinese entities through sanctions and export controls, America will impose further measures on Beijing. However, Wang Yi cautioned during his meeting with Blinken about derailing US-China relations by choosing between international cooperation in response to global issues versus confrontation that would negatively affect all nations involved if either country leads the latter path instead of a win-win scenario for everyone concerned.