There is no doubt that tensions have been rising between the world’s great powers in recent years, an issue only accelerated by the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic. The People’s Republic of China continues to wield ever-increasing influence on its neighbors in Asia, as well as countries in Africa and even the US’s backyard. Several Latin American countries have recently increased ties with Chinese businesses. However, it is not just China—Russia, too, has come into increasing conflict with the United States over issues including intelligence, military posturing, and threatening US allies and partners. These developments have prompted the US to explore ways to maintain its economic hegemony and diplomatic influence.
COVID presented a unique opportunity for the United States, unbeknownst to many, for a secret campaign against its adversaries. According to a Reuters investigation, the United States had engaged in a long-term social media disinformation campaign starting in 2020. Efforts were ramped up after Chinese COVID vaccines entered the market, targeting countries neighboring the People’s Republic of China and within mainland China itself. As expected, the campaign promulgated many claims to convince people to take on an anti-Communist Party of China stance, but this particular campaign has come under heavy fire for its dangerous nature.
During the pandemic, for example, Reuters uncovered bots on X (formerly Twitter) which were promoting allegations that Chinese vaccines against COVID were not effective. X then responded to Reuters stating that there were numerous bots and identified them as a part of a campaign to instill anti-Chinese vaccine sentiments. One tweet stated, “#ChinaIsTheVirus” in the Philippines, a country which at the time, was struggling with supply chain issues, particularly concerning vaccines and medical equipment. Simultaneously, the lethal Delta variant of the Coronavirus was spreading rapidly across Asia, costing thousands of lives. Muslims were also targeted with posts about Chinese vaccines containing pork. Some posts even alleged the inclusion of rat poison in COVID shots.
The US's COVID vaccine disinformation campaign targeted the Philippines, which struggled with vaccine hesitancy compared to neighboring nations. Source: OurWorldInData
Although the campaign was eventually stopped under the Biden administration in mid-2021, it appears to have been far-reaching in its efforts to curb trust in Chinese vaccination and aid programs. Posts even appeared in Central Asian and Middle Eastern countries.
Unfortunately, COVID is not the first time the US overlooked collateral damage to global health in its pursuit of strategic goals. Experts have drawn parallels with another incident in 2011 when the CIA offered fake Hepatitis B vaccines in Pakistan to collect DNA to search for Osama Bin Laden. The operation was critical to national security but also decreased trust in medicine. Even before the operation, Pakistan was already a hotbed for vaccine-preventable diseases and violence against healthcare workers, exacerbated by war, poverty, and extremism. Amidst efforts to eradicate vaccine-preventable diseases like Polio in the country, any loss of trust can prove fatal.
In response to the uncovering of the US's COVID campaign, the Chinese Communist Party stated that the US is known to have engaged in disinformation. COVID "vaccine diplomacy" has seen the Chinese counter the US's information wars by distributing millions of doses of homegrown vaccines to countries unable to procure enough doses. Russia has also engaged in this form of diplomacy to expand its influence, further undermining the US's global influence.
The US, despite being a world leader in developing medical countermeasures for COVID, has seriously lagged behind China in terms of vaccine distribution to developing nations. The Center for Strategic and International Studies states that the United States “has the ability to shield developing nations not only from the virus, but from the designs of competing nations.” Instead, the CSIS reports that the lack of US involvement in global vaccine distribution has led even its perceptively close partners into the camp of rivals like Russia and China. For example, Brazil, a widely recognized US ally, backtracked from its previous stance and signed deals to import Chinese vaccines amidst a rising COVID death toll.
There are further concerns over vaccination roll-outs to developing nations due to the intellectual property of US vaccine developers. Products rolled out by pharmaceutical companies like Johnson and Johnson, Moderna, and AstraZeneca must be protected from potentially harmful parties. Furthermore, the US would have to resolve global supply chain issues concerning trade barriers and raw materials.
Despite the barriers, resolving these issues will achieve US strategic goals without the collateral damage that disinformation campaigns bring. Rolling out lifesaving medical tools can solidify support for the US abroad through medical channels. It also allows the US to continue taking the lead in tackling leading global issues as it did in the past with outbreaks like HIV/AIDS. This allows the US to resolve geopolitical conflicts and secure partnerships with countries targeted by its adversaries.
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