China to manipulate Indian US elections?

  

 

 

By using an AI whopping amount of generated content through social media influencers, china aims to turn the table in its favor and just concluded presidential elections in Taiwan were a test dose.

 

US technology firm Microsoft’s intelligence team has warned of a possible state-backed propaganda funding and turned the results in their favor. The possibility is to disrupt three major democratic nations that are going to poll in 2024 say India, the USA, and South Korea

As India, South Korea, and the United States prepare for their upcoming elections, concerns arise about potential interference from Chinese cyber actors and influencers. According to a report, there are fears that China may employ AI-generated false propaganda distributed through social media influencers to influence election outcomes

 

Microsoft has raised alarms about this possibility, suggesting that China may try to manipulate the election results to their favor as these three democratic countries have a free and fair foreign policy that does not suit the expansionist dreams of China.

 

Microsoft has raised alarms about this possibility, suggesting that China may attempt to manipulate the election results in their favor. This concern arises because these three democratic countries have a free and strong foreign policy that does not align with China's expansionist ambitions.

 

China is reportedly planning to sow panic and confusion in the general public through amplified memes, videos, and audio content on social media. While the potential impact of this social media campaign on voting patterns is still uncertain, experts suggest that the chances of significant influence remain low."

 

In the lead-up to the January presidential election in Taiwan, China reportedly employed similar tactics. A Beijing-backed group, popularly known as Dragonbridge, made efforts to manipulate the election by portraying William Lai, a key contender, in a negative light. Numerous fake audio clips were widely circulated on YouTube. YouTube had to remove these videos later.

 

Additionally, there was a concerted effort to sway public opinion through the dissemination of AI-generated memes targeting William Lai, accusing him of mishandling state funds and delving into his private life. As a final resort, China issued an ultimatum to the electorate of Taiwan, asserting that Taiwan is an integral part of China and urging people not to vote for Lai. However, despite these efforts, Lai, known for his anti-China stance, emerged victorious in the elections.

Though America or Korea can be seen as a possible challenger to China’s growing aspirations, India stands as a potential threat to China’s growing aspirations of controlling whole Asian countries. For this reason, India remains the utmost interest nation for China. India has a strong middle class with a vociferous appetite for consumer goods. But today’s ruling dispensation is posing a series of challenges to China and its hegemony.

While America and Korea may be viewed as potential challengers to China's expanding ambitions, India stands out as a significant threat to China's aspirations of exerting control over Asian countries. Unlike the two countries, India shares a vast stretch of border lines with China. Soldiers of India and China clashed with each other at least two times in 2022 and had a bitter standoff in 2020. In both cases, India was successful in containing the dragon in a very big way.

Unlike other countries, China is fearful of direct contact with India as well. India's vast population and emerging middle class with a growing appetite for consumer goods make it a nation of handle with care.

 

Unlike the predecessor Congress party which is known for malleability and known for engagement policies, Beijing is wary of the present ruling dispensation in India Bharatiya Janata Party and its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.  It was during their tenure at the time of the nuclear test of 1998 that India declared China as the primary threat to India’s sovereignty. India is successfully undergoing rapid urbanization in border areas and has refused to be involved in the Belt and Road initiative. India is fast expanding her nuclear arsenal with Agni 5 which can hit Beijing easily.

 

China always regarded India’s rich consumer base for its vast expanding manufacturing industry. China’s exports to India ticked $ 135.2 billion  Further, the rising infrastructure investment in India was expected to boost Chinese business. But Modi’s make-in-India policy is limiting this business interest in a big way and is slowly eating into the monopoly China possesses in the field of manufacturing.  Many countries including America are actively looking at India as a possible alternative to china. Apple already downsizing its presence in China and expanding its presence in India.

 

More than that, India openly challenges the Chinese army in the boundary areas and foils many bids of incursions. Many countries in the South China Sea have border disputes with China and they are worried about a huge military presence and large Chinese army. India lately, is actively helping those countries to arm themselves against any possible Chinese incursions.  The latest arms deal of selling BrahMos Missiles to the Philippines is an example of what happened this month.

 

China is wary that it will be difficult for the Chinese government to strike a deal with India under Modi without compromising their interest. Hence they want to influence the strong Indian netizens in a wrong way.

 

Today India has over 750 million internet users and it is expected to touch 900 million with the start of the year 2025.  The Indian mobile market is largely controlled by Chinese companies like Huawei, Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo, and ZTE, all of these companies have sold millions of mobile phones in India. Many of them have an operating system based in China. It gives ample leverage for China to influx its propaganda machine. So the impact will be there but how much and how drastically it can influence the Indian electorate will be proved in the coming days.