Influence warfare: How UFWD leads China's charm offensive

United Front Works Department (UFWD) is a little-known body that leads China's influence offensive in the world.

After the Tian’anmen square incident in 1989, the then dormant UFWD revived its status as an important and influential part of the Communist Party.

UFWD was considered one of the three ‘magical weapons’ of ideological indoctrination by Mao Zedong. The other two were the Red army and the Party, both of whom were considered important to spread the Chinese narrative across the world and suppress any voice of dissent.

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Chinese influence operations

Over a period of time, it has become imperative for China to crush or counter any negative publicity about the Communist giant.

Its influence operations are generally aimed at two things - to create a positive narrative of China and to slowly infiltrate into systems/organisations that threaten or challenge the interests of the Communist Party of China (CCP).

The UFWD is one of the many bodies in China responsible for carrying out influence operations at the behest of the Party.

Xi Jinping and the UFWD connection

After 1989, UFWD expanded its outreach. But after Xi assumed office in 2012, the status and role of UFWD has grown manifold. During an event in July 2022, President Xi said, “UFWD is an important magic weapon for the party to overcome the enemy, govern and rejuvenate the country. It is an important magic weapon for uniting all Chinese sons and daughters at home and abroad to realise the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”

Xi has a long-standing association with the UFWD. Xi’s father, Xi Zhongxun, was a central figure in carrying out its work in Tibet, that was aimed at influencing the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama.

Understanding the UFWD

Various reforms and restructuring took place in the UFWD since 2016. Presently, the UFWD has nine bureaus and four other units, each responsible for a different area.

The different bureaus of UFWD mainly focus on members of eight minor parties, ethnic minorities, religious sectors, private businesses, overseas students, foreign returnees, Hong Kong and Macau, Taiwanese and their relatives in China and overseas ethnic Chinese and their relatives staying in China.

The UFWD receives funding from the Chinese government and other Chinese Communist Party entities. The Ministry of Finance does not publish its annual budget for the UFWD. However, it has been reported by various media agencies that the Chinese government had invested over $1.3 billion annually since 2008 to impose a tighter control over its global image.

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UFWD and the global image of China

UFWD employs a series of measures to spread a positive image of China while discrediting any negative narrative. By monitoring digital platforms, media and censorship, diplomatic relations, economic coercion, surveillance and intimidation of Chinese diasporas living abroad, Confucius Institutes, think tanks etc, UFWD makes sure that the objectives of CCP are met.

On multiple occasions, the UFWD has used these tactics of systematically discrediting the Western media, social media monitoring and interfering in another country’s elections etc to spread CCP’s influence over the globe and paint a rosy picture of the Chinese government.

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