US planning new round of anti-Xinjiang propaganda, sources say

Photo/Xinhua

The United States government is "upgrading and reshaping" its production line of rumors about Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, in its latest effort to create the pretext for a new round of sanctions and pressure on China, sources familiar with the matter told China Daily.

The sources said multiple US departments are coordinating efforts to formulate Xinjiang-related propaganda strategies in order to spread negative information about the region in an organized way.

The specific measures include encouraging US academic institutions, think tanks and non-governmental organizations to constantly fabricate so-called research reports about Xinjiang and publish related books. The US government will provide suggestions and advice for this end, sources said.

The US Agency for Global Media networks, which include VOA, will be instructed to produce news reports as well as "propaganda materials" about "genocide" and "forced labor" in Xinjiang in dozens of languages, China Daily was told. In the meanwhile, the USAGM will coordinate the media networks in US allied countries to reprint and push such "products".

According to the sources, the US networking will also participate in the production line of Xinjiang rumors through weakening and even blocking true information about Xinjiang released by the Chinese side while providing technical assistance for anti-China forces to spread false information related to the region. Such efforts will also be financially supported by the US government, sources said.