China’s leaders should study James Bond films

BY THE TIME Chinese censors finally allowed a James Bond film to be shown in a mainland cinema, in 2007, the franchise was more than four decades old. Only thanks to rampant piracy were Chinese familiar with the British spy, commonly referred to by his codename, Ling ling qi. Chinese leaders would do well to study a plot device beloved in the early films: the moment when a ruthless genius explains his plans for world domination to a captive Bond, believing him moments from death. With the reliability of a well-tuned Aston Martin, the bragging turns out to be ill-timed. Within moments Bond is free, the villain’s lair ablaze and his schemes thwarted. Today in the real world, China faces unusual resistance to its bid for a front seat as a global power. Surprisingly often, China’s woes stem from what film critics might term Bond-villain blunders, involving premature admissions of ambition.

Take the ongoing campaign by American officials to scold allies into shunning Chinese high-technology for 5G mobile-telecommunications networks. The secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, says that America may refuse to share intelligence with governments that install kit from such tech giants as Huawei, a firm that Mr Pompeo accuses of having “deep connections” to Chinese spy services. Allies grumble that American officials have not shared hard evidence to back their claims. On March 15th Li Keqiang, China’s prime minister, declared that his government would never ask companies to break the law to spy on other countries, insisting: “This is not how China behaves.” Alas, Mr Li’s words cannot fully soothe foreign governments and businesses who know what Chinese law openly permits. Notably, an intelligence law of 2017 decrees that all Chinese organisations and citizens are obliged to co-operate with national intelligence-gathering operations. None may demur if spooks requisition their premises or equipment.