Be alert to foreign infiltration, Chinese graft-buster warns diplomats and cadres

Party cadres and officials on the foreign affairs front line are at higher risk of being encouraged to defect, senior anti-corruption officer says

Authorities are still also trying to stamp out misuse of public funds and illegal payments

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Zhang Jiwen, a senior official with the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, says officials and cadres on the diplomatic front lines are at greater risk of infiltration. Photo: China State Council Information Office

Published: 6:00am, 5 Nov 2023

China’s top graft-buster has warned foreign affairs officials and Communist Party cadres to be on guard against infiltration and corruption, as Beijing doubles down on national security amid tensions with the West.

“Diplomatic and foreign affairs cadres are the main force in foreign affairs work. They are on the front line of foreign exchanges, especially the struggle with hostile Western forces,” Zhang Jiwen, a senior official with the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), said in an article published in a CCDI magazine on Wednesday.

“They are at relatively high risk of being infiltrated, encouraged to defect and coaxed into corruption.”

Zhang is head of the CCDI’s disciplinary inspection group at the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission, the party’s oversight body for foreign affairs.

The article detailed the risks – including leaks of confidential information – in various units unearthed through investigations.

“There are still problems such as illegal acceptance of gifts from private businesspeople during trips, using public funds for travel and illegal payment of subsidies,” Zhang said.