In the wake of China abandoning its strict “zero COVID” policy, U.S. border officials have recorded a surge of Chinese immigrants crossing the southern border this year.
A second analysis by Axios put that number at more than 4,000 for 2023.
In February alone, there were 1,368 encounters with illegal Chinese immigrants. By contrast, U.S. border agents recorded just 55 encounters during the same month in 2022.
Analysts say the deepening income gap in China combined with the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) draconian COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns is driving the surge in migration.
The ominous arrival of a new wave of Chinese illegal immigrants is occurring against the backdrop of an ongoing battle against CCP agent espionage on U.S. soil.
Since 2019, U.S. universities have become ground zero for spy activities involving CCP actors.
Reports of espionage and the unlawful exchange of information have been linked to at least five U.S. colleges across Texas, California, Kansas, Massachusetts, and Illinois in the past four years.
“No country poses a greater, more severe or long-term threat to our national security and economic prosperity than China,” FBI agent Joseph Bonavolonta told reporters after a Texas professor was accused of spying for the benefit of the CCP.
“China’s communist government’s goal, simply put, is to replace the United States as the world superpower.”
Arriving in the wake of U.S. university spy attacks was the notorious spy balloon event earlier this year. On Feb. 4, U.S. military officials shot down an alleged Chinese surveillance balloon over the coast of South Carolina.
Better Options
The United States grants asylum to Chinese nationals at a comparatively high rate. Government data show that 58 percent of Chinese illegal immigrants are given asylum upon request.By contrast, Chilean and Brazilian asylum seekers are granted at a rate of 15 percent and 11 percent, respectively.
And while analysts say that higher numbers of illegal immigrants from China carry similar risks as other groups, some think that the CCP has better options for intelligence operations than asylum seekers.
“Illegal migration is not the optimal method for spies to get in because it’s risky [and] attracts more scrutiny,” Irina Tsukerman, security analyst and founder of Scarab Rising, told The Epoch Times.
Tsukerman said illegal immigrants aren’t ideal for collecting the type of intelligence the CCP wants because of a high probability of legal entanglement and apprehension by border officials.
She said it’s Chinese nationals who arrive with legitimate U.S. visas who are the ones to watch.
“Legal migrants with ties to the home country, who are more likely to come back for visits, are better targets for intelligence recruitment—particularly if they have positions in universities, research labs, or companies where they may acquire influence or information desired by Beijing,” Tsukerman said.
She said she believes that the wave of Chinese migrants heading for the U.S. southern border is problematic just the same.
“The Chinese migrants crossing the southern borders carry the same risk as any other category of people. In the case of China’s gangs and organized crimes, the southern border has become a welcoming sign for fentanyl trafficking,” Tsukerman said.
“Human trafficking often goes hand in hand with drug smuggling.”
But U.S. immigration attorney Min Hwan Ahn noted that it’s important to avoid generalizing asylum seekers.
“Given last year’s incidents involving espionage charges against 13 immigrants, it is reasonable for legislators to be concerned about potential security risks associated with illegal immigration from China,” Ahn told The Epoch Times.
As the founder of EZ485, a visa application and assistance service, Ahn has witnessed the U.S. immigration crisis up close. He said U.S. officials should strive to uphold national security but maintain a compassionate approach to solutions.
“It’s crucial for authorities to strike a balance between ensuring national security and upholding humanitarian values when dealing with migrants seeking asylum or refuge,” he said.
Just the Beginning?
Motives aside, it appears that the mass migration of Chinese nationals toward the U.S. border isn’t slowing down anytime soon.Some have cited the CCP’s pandemic response and the subsequent economic fallout as the impetus for the spike in Chinese nationals migrating overseas.
“The damage to the Chinese economy compared to four or five years ago is just so devastating for low-skilled workers,” Liang Zai, a U.S. sociology professor who also studies Chinese migration, told Axios reporters.
But Tsukerman said it’s important to remember that “not everyone fleeing is doing so due to political repression.”
Although she said Beijing’s politics have definitely triggered the new wave of migration, “pandemic policies, as well as the increasingly inward-looking political and economic restructuring, have had a significant impact on China’s economy.”
Ahn agreed, saying, “Political tensions and crackdowns on dissent within China may have prompted some individuals to seek asylum or refuge in the United States.”