US panel accuses China of Rafale disinformation drive after Op Sindoor

The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission accused Beijing of orchestrating a disinformation campaign to undermine French Rafale sales in favor of its J-35s, exploiting Operation Sindoor and India-Pakistan conflict.

Washington: The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a US Congress-created advisory body, accused China on Tuesday of masterminding a disinformation campaign after Operation Sindoor, as part of its Gray Zone activities to use “fake social media accounts to propagate AI images of supposed ‘debris’ from planes.”

“China initiated a disinformation campaign to hinder sales of French Rafale aircraft in favour of its own J-35s, using fake social media accounts to propagate AI images of supposed ‘debris’ from the planes that China’s weaponry destroyed,” it said in its annual report to Congress.

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The report also claimed that Beijing “opportunistically” leveraged the India-Pakistan conflict in May to “advertise the sophistication of its weapons, useful in the contexts of its ongoing border tensions with India and its expanding defence industry goals.”

India launched Operation Sindoor to retaliate against the Pahalgam attack in April that killed 26 civilians, striking terror installations and military targets inside Pakistan.

In August, Indian Air Force Chief AP Singh revealed that Indian forces had destroyed five Pakistani fighter jets and one large airborne surveillance aircraft during Operation Sindoor.

On India-China ties, the Commission states there is an “asymmetry” between the two sides regarding the resolution of the border issue.

“China leverages high-level, well-publicised dialogues to reach partial resolutions—hoping to open the door for bilateral cooperation on trade and other areas by compartmentalising the border issue without sacrificing its core interests,” while “India wants a sustainable solution to the border issues”

“In recent years, the Indian government has increasingly recognised the seriousness of the threat posed by China at the border,” it emphasised.

According to the report, the current terms of bilateral economic cooperation or border resolution agreements were “largely conceptual,” with few “specifics or follow-ups” announced by either side.

It also argued that the expected succession of the Dalai Lama “will likely be a point of contention between the two neighbours.”

“It remains to be seen whether China’s and India’s 2025 commitments are a short-term function of India’s desire to hedge against tumult in trade negotiations with the United States or are a long-term shift toward normalisation in bilateral relations,” it noted.

After months of bilateral meetings, in August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit and met Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In Washington, the move was viewed as India hedging its bets after the relationship with the United States soured due to the imposition of 50 per cent tariffs.

In recent months, India-US relations have stabilised, with the first tranche of the trade agreement expected to be announced soon.