June 18, 2024 -- Facts have shown time and again that the U.S. has persistently manipulated social media to spread disinformation, poison public opinion and vilify other countries' image, and China firmly opposes such acts, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Monday during a regular press briefing.

 

Reuters reported on June 14 that the Pentagon orchestrated a secret online campaign meant to discredit China during the COVID-19 pandemic through phony internet accounts and social media posts that sowed doubt about the safety and efficacy of China's CoronaVac. The report cited a senior U.S. military officer involved in the campaign saying that "We didn't do a good job sharing vaccines with partners, so what was left to us was to throw shade on China's."

 

The remarks from the senior U.S. military officer reveals the truth and the real intention behind the disinformation campaigns against other countries, Lin said when commenting on the report.

 

When the U.S. wants to contain and suppress a country, it chooses to ignore the facts and truth, and launches smears and vilification through "coordination," he said.

 

Such an approach is not only visible in its campaign of fabricating and disseminating disinformation about Chinese-made vaccines, but also in its smears against the widely welcomed Belt and Road Initiative as well as the "overcapacity" false narrative on China's new energy vehicles, for which there is strong supply and demand, he said.

 

Lin said such practices by no means show the U.S. "power" and only reveal its obsession with supremacy and hypocrisy. The international community needs to be clear-eyed about this, he added.

 

"A big country should behave in a manner befitting its status. We hope that the U.S. will right its mindset, shoulder its due responsibilities as a major country and stop propagating disinformation against other countries," said the spokesperson.