Norwegian government report points out that China intervenes in the West’s politics

In the Norwegian government’s newly released 2022 public threat and risk assessment report, the country points out that China already has the will and ability to intervene in the political process of Western countries. 

The BL writes in a recent article, that the government report’s assessment of domestic threats in Norway specifically focuses on the use of intelligence tools from China and Russia, operations against Norwegian computer networks, the spread of military technology, strategic acquisitions and influence, and the emergence of extreme environments with anti-state and conspiracy theories.

In the report, Norway’s Defense Minister Odd Roger Enoksen said, amongst other things, that “national security interests are being challenged both directly and indirectly across all sectors and areas of society.”

“Norway faces a challenge as China attempts to change the international security architecture to combat Western unity and seize intellectual and strategic advantage without creating direct armed conflict,” the Minister stated.

In the report, the Minister pointed out that Norway, under the challenges of foreign intelligence agencies, could face serious consequences with compromised freedom of movement, reduced national capacity to deal with crises, reduced commercial and industrial competitiveness. The Minister also pointed out that China is good at using fake accounts in social media to counter criticism and that Norwegian society, which is highly digitized, is particularly vulnerable in such situations.

“As a small state, Norway is in an exposed position, and our competitive industrial sector and business expertise are of interest to others. We live in one of the world’s most digitized societies, which makes us vulnerable,” the Minister said.