According to a report by the Global Times on July 20, a first-time ruling by a US court that a Chinese-born American engineer is guilty under the Economic Espionage Act has caused a media frenzy about a new wave of "China espionage threats."

Some media sources deliberately tried to create a scandal, claiming that there are 3,500 spies working for China in the US, and their sole task is to steal confidential information.

Although there has not yet been a final decision, the US has seemingly found evidence of espionage, and has taken this opportunity to greatly exaggerate the "China espionage threat."

According to a report by Christian Science Monitor, the case is not an individual one. "There are over 3,500 operatives in the US masquerading as students or on H1B visas (special work visas) with the sole intention of getting jobs in American manufacturing or defense industries to steal secrets for the Chinese government," said Brett Kingstone, a close collaborator with the FBI.

Jin Canrong, a professor from the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China said that the claim of 3,500 Chinese overseas students and Chinese decedents acting as spies, reflects the fact that the US's elite strategists have no understanding of China's 30 years of transformation, through which China developed from a "strong country with a weak society" into a "strong country with a strong society."

In today's China, people intending to study or work in the US are generally motivated by personal interest, and the US has exaggerated the power of the Chinese government.

By People's Daily Online