CHINA – COVID-19
China increased by 50% its total death count from the COVID-19 virus on Friday, April 17, 2020 – the typically news day of the week when there is a smaller audience. This provides additional evidence backing the growing concerns of other countries, including the United States, that China and its ruling Communist Party deliberately deceived the world about the disease. In a recent interview Secretary of State Michael Pompeo discussed China’s actions and what it cost the US and the world in terms of lives lost and the economic destruction of thriving economies.
“It’s very clear now that the Chinese Communist Party and the World Health Organization didn’t put that information out into the international space as they’re required to do in a timely fashion, and the result of that is that we now have this global pandemic… We are still asking the Chinese Communist Party to allow experts to get into that virology lab so that we can determine precisely where this virus began. It’s not political. This is about science and epidemiology. We need to understand what has taken place so that we can reduce risk to Americans in the days and weeks and months ahead and get the global economy back on track,” Pompeo said.
CHINA – G5
When asked in an interview if America’s allies in Europe are reconsidering their position on allowing China to, in essence, control their information, Pompeo said that the Trump administration has been out telling the world about the threats that are posed from allowing the Chinese Communist Party to own the infrastructure whether it is Huawei or ZTE. The COVID-19 virus may be the single most significant point in this battle as it puts China’s behavior in the spotlight. Countries that were willing to overlook minor issues may not be doing so in the future.
“I am very confident that at this moment, this moment where the Chinese Communist Party failed to be transparent and open and handle data in an appropriate way, will cause many, many countries to rethink what they were doing with respect to their telecom architecture, and when Huawei comes knocking to sell them equipment and hardware, that they will have a different prism through which to view that decision,” he said.
IRAN
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“…we have seen this before where the Iranians behaved in ways that were inconsistent with international law,” said Pompeo. He pointed out that the current Administration is serious about protecting the country and the US military and its Navy and that it will be making decisions about how to respond.
NORTH KOREA
On April 15, 2020, the US Departments of State, Homeland Security, Treasury, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued an advisory to raise the awareness of the cyber threat posed by North Korea. The advisory highlights North Korea’s malicious cyber activities around the world, identifies US government resources that provide technical and threat information, and includes recommended measures to counter the cyber threat. This past week North Korea launched missile off its east coast in a failed attempt to garner some of the world’s attention during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and conducted cyberwarfare against many western targets.
According to a statement issued by the US Department of States, “North Korea’s malicious cyber activities threaten the United States and countries around the world and, in particular, pose a significant threat to the integrity and stability of the international financial system. The United States works closely with like-minded countries to focus attention on and condemn disruptive, destructive, or otherwise destabilizing behavior in cyberspace.” It appears unlikely that the North Korean threat will diminish during the pandemic.
DARIA NOVAK served in the United States State Department during the Reagan Administration, and currently is on the Board of the American Analysis of News and Media Inc., which publishes usagovpolicy.com and the New York Analysis of Policy and Government. Each Saturday, she presents key updates on U.S. foreign policy from the State Department.
Illustration: Pixabay