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Washington, Nov 18 (IANS) The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, an advisory body created by the US Congress, on Tuesday accused China of masterminding a disinformation campaign after Operation Vermilion as part of its gray zone activities by “using fake social media accounts to publicize AI images of purported ‘debris’ from planes.”
“China launched a disinformation campaign to hinder the sale of French Rafale aircraft in favor of its own J-35, using fake social media accounts to publicize AI images of purported ‘wreckage’ of planes destroyed by China’s weapons,” it said in its annual report to Congress.
The report also claimed that Beijing “opportunistically” took advantage of the India-Pakistan conflict in May to “advertise the sophistication of its weapons, which is useful in the context of ongoing border tensions with India and its expanded defense industry goals.”
India launched Operation Sindoor to retaliate against the Pahalgam attack in April, which killed 26 civilians by striking terrorist installations and military bases inside Pakistan.
In August, Indian Air Force chief AP Singh revealed that Indian forces had destroyed five Pakistani fighter jets and a large aerial surveillance aircraft during Operation Sindoor.
The Commission on India-China relations says there is “disparity” between the two sides over the resolution of the border issue.
“China takes advantage of high-level, well-publicized talks to reach a partial solution – hoping to open the door to bilateral cooperation on trade and other areas by dividing the border issue without sacrificing its core interests,” while “India wants a permanent solution to the border issues”.
“In recent years, the Government of India has increasingly recognized the seriousness of the threat posed by China on the border,” it stressed.
According to the report, the current terms of the bilateral economic cooperation or border settlement agreements were “largely conceptual”, with few “specifics or follow-ups” announced by both sides.
It also argued that the expected succession of the Dalai Lama “will be a point of contention between the two neighbours.”
“It remains to be seen whether China and India’s 2025 commitments are a short-term function of India’s desire to hedge against turmoil in trade talks with the United States or a long-term shift towards normalization in bilateral relations,” it said.
After months of bilateral meetings, in August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi traveled to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit and met Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In Washington, the move was seen as India hedging its bets after relations with the United States soured due to the imposition of 50 per cent tariffs.
In recent months, India-US relations have stabilized, with the first tranche of a trade agreement expected to be announced soon.
–IANS
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