China ‘aligning economic coercion with disinformation’ to pressure Aust

ASPI Senior Analyst Dr Jacob Wallis says Australia is facing a “significant threat” from Chinese Communist Party disinformation campaigns. Australia saw a breakdown in relations with China after the communist regime encouraged its citizens to boycott Australian exports and reconsider travel plans. Mr Wallis told Sky News interference from China was very distinct from that of other "adversaries". “The People’s Republic of China has significant economic weight that it can align with its disinformation,” he said. “They can align economic coercion with disinformation around the potential for consumer boycotts of Australian exports. “It’s that economic weight aligned with disinformation that the can use to apply pressure to constrain our capacity to manoeuvre diplomatically. “That’s why I think Minister Payne is noting that it’s important that we call out disinformation where we see it where it impacts on Australian interests.” Image: Getty Via news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site https://www.news.com.au