A wave of Chinese citizens “desperate” to flee an oppressive regime and cross into the United States illegally is a “perfect opportunity” for the communist party to smuggle in its agents, a China expert has said.
“There is a deep pessimism in Chinese society and that is driving people to leave the country,” Gordon Chang, an author of books on China, told Fox News. “They are desperate”.
Border Patrol apprehensions of Chinese nationals crossing into the US illegally rose more than 800% compared to the same period last fiscal year when January was included, figures for which have not yet been released, he told Fox News. a senior Customs and Border Protection source.
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Chang said that nearly three years of China’s “covid zero” strategy, which included strict lockdowns, mass testing, quarantines and contact tracing, was the initial driving factor that pushed Chinese citizens to seek refuge elsewhere.
“They just found it unbearable,” he said.
In addition, a shrinking Chinese economy and falling property prices are causing people to leave, according to Chang.
“There is a sense of unease in the country,” he told Fox News. “People argue that the country will recover a bit, but the Chinese regime is not solving the root causes of the problems.”
As a result, “the flow of refugees from China will not slow down,” Chang said.
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There have been 1,862 Border Patrol encounters with Chinese nationals between October, when the fiscal year began, and the end of December, compared with 229 during the same period last year, according to CBP data. In December, 931 Chinese nationals were found, compared with 64 in December 2021.
Amid the surge in Chinese crossing the US border, the Department of Homeland Security is closely monitoring potential Chinese spies and other national security threats, a source told Fox News.
The southern border has been constantly overwhelmed by the flood of immigrants. There were more than 215,000 migrant encounters in December. (John Moore/Getty Images)
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“Almost all of the Chinese who cross the Darien Gap to the southern border of the United States are people who don’t want to live in China,” Chang said. “But we have to assume that the Chinese regime is taking advantage of the situation by smuggling its agents.”
As the United States continues to grapple with a historic immigration crisis, with more than 251,000 immigrant encounters in December, Chang said it is “a perfect opportunity for Chinese security services to bring their people to the United States.”
“Our southern border is undefended and bad actors are coming in,” he added. “We have to take control of the situation.“
Fox News’ Bill Melugin contributed to this report
