According to Associated Press, counterterrorism leaders were informed that a refocusing of Beijing and its high-tech technology was inevitable.
The CIA’s shift of focus to “great power competition”China has many other things. “money and resources would be increasingly shifted” away from counterterrorism (CT), the spy agency’s second-highest ranking officer reportedly told leaders of its CT branch. The meeting occurred some weeks back behind closed doors according to Monday’s report by the Associated Press, citing anonymous sources.
The report stated that David Cohen, Deputy Director of the Agency, assured the officials at the meeting that the fight against terrorists will remain an agency priority to a large extent.
According to the news agency, the entire US intelligence has been moving towards China. Hundreds of counterterrorism officers have had their posts reassigned. According to the AP the CIA also is moving in the same direction. They are now training current workers in Chinese fluency and hiring Chinese speaking officers.
According to the news agency this realignment is happening under congressional pressure. It will also mean cuts to funding and reductions in manpower for other areas. China is a major source of cutting-edge technology, and lawmakers want to know more about it, such as advances in quantum science, artificial Intelligence, and other areas. “that are likely to disrupt how future wars are fought and economies are structured.”
READ MORE CIA reveals plans to increase focus on China, technology, climate change, & diversity in internal announcement leaked to US media
In October last year, the CIA announced a massive structural overhaul that included creation of two “mission centers”. One center is for China, the other for emerging technologies.
The AP’s repomassnews.comes on the back of last week’s announcement of the CIA-led assassination of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was killed by a drone strike in Kabul, US President Joe Biden announced last Monday.
According to the agency, supporters of the White House believe that the attack showed that the US is capable of dealing with terrorist threats even though it pulled out from Afghanistan in 2011. Critics, meanwhile, have suggested that Zawahiri’s presence in the country indicated a resurgence of terrorism after the Taliban takeover. Afghanistan’s new authorities rejected US claims that the al-Qaeda leader had been granted protection and the green light to live in the capital.
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