The US is still struggling to establish just how far Chinese hackers have infiltrated US cell phone networks, penetrating all operators. The American press uncovered this operation in September and reported in October that these hackers had targeted data for Donald Trump's number and that of his future vice president, JD Vance, while also targeting campaign staff for Democrat Kamala Harris. "This is far and away the most serious telecom hack in our history," Senate Intelligence Committee president Mark Warner told the New York Times on Thursday, November 21.
The case illustrates more assertive practices in destabilization or intelligence operations by Chinese actors, at the instigation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is pushing the country to fulfill its role as a great power. During the American presidential campaign, computer security experts also pointed to the role of another Chinese operation, dubbed "Spamouflage." This involved the activation of fake Facebook accounts and dissemination of images and videos, often created using artificial intelligence in order to accentuate divisions and support the idea of an America on the brink of collapse, doomed by fentanyl and gun violence. It was an operation not unlike Russia's practices in the 2016 campaign.
In Europe, all eyes have been on a 225-meter-long Chinese bulk carrier ship, the Yi-Peng 3, immobilized in the Baltic Sea and under the supervision of the Danish navy for having been located exactly above two submarine cables – one linking Sweden to Lithuania, the other Central Europe to the Nordic countries – when they were damaged on Sunday, November 17 and Monday, November 18. Caution is still called for, however, especially as the nationality of the ship's captain has not been confirmed. "China has always fully complied with its obligations as a flag state", and requires "Chinese ships to scrupulously respect the laws and regulations in force," said Lin Jian, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
However, on October 8, 2023, a Chinese vessel, the NewNew Polar Bear, had already damaged a gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia and a parallel undersea telecommunications cable. It left its anchor there. China admitted in August 2024 that the container ship had indeed caused the damage but maintained that this was a weather-related accident. "If I had a nickel for every time a Chinese ship was dragging its anchor on the bottom of the Baltic Sea in the vicinity of important cables I would have two nickels, which isn't much but it's weird that it happened twice," wrote Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, on the social media network X.
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