Description: Several US politicians have raised concerns over purchases of land conducted by private Chinese companies which are controversially close to US strategic interests such as military bases, space development institutions and water supply installations. Chinese investor, Sui Liu’s purchase of the former Daniel Webster College campus and a former aviation school in 2017, Jiahui Education Group’s purchase of the Chester College of New England and Nongfu Spring’s purchase of land near the Nashua Pennichuck water system, initiated suspicions on China’s land acquisitions in the US. The area of concern is located in and around the city of Boston where several US strategic installations are located such as the BAE Systems Electronic System, which is a defense contractor closely connected to the US Air Force, Space Force and other intelligence agencies. Liu Pengyu, China’s embassy spokesperson in the US has stated that ideas of Chinese infiltration through real estate investments were overstated and publicly inflated to diminish the progress in US – China economic relations.
Impact: The account of Chinese land purchases within the US for the past couple of years raises serious concerns regarding Chinese intelligence and soft power infiltration in the US in times of strained relations and heightened trade tensions between the geopolitical rivals. China’s foreign policy tradecraft in essence is assertion through economic investment which is later exploited as a vehicle for various covert activities, such as intelligence gathering, sabotage and expansion of soft power influence through cultural and educational centers. The Trump administration relentless persecution of the US intelligence community, such as the recent revocations of security clearances and the firing of a prominent DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency) official, further debilitate US counterintelligence capabilities in conducting background checks and corporate intelligence verifications on businesses and individuals known to have ties with China and its Communist party. China would further expand its covert clout of activities within the US under current conditions where the Republican administration aims at exerting power and influence over its intelligence agencies, instead of reinforcing their capabilities.