Hoover Says China Thinks Of U.S. As No. 1 Enemy

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32034, 8 July 1969, Page 15

Hoover Says China Thinks Of U.S. As No. 1 Enemy

(N.Z. Press Assn. —Copyright) WASHINGTON, July 7. China had singled out the United States as its number one enemy and was out to tap needed scientific data there by overt and covert means, said Mr J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

“The potent threat of our national security posed by Red China still exists,” Mr Hoover said. “In fact, the blatant, belligerent and illogical statements made by Red China's spokesmen during the last year leave no doubt that the United States is Communist China's number one enemy.” Mr Hoover’s warning was delivered behind closed doors last April to a House Appropriations Sub-committee. His testimony was released today.

‘This bitterness towards the United States and other Western countries—even the Soviet Union—is a factor in Red China’s ambition to equal other major powers economically, militarily and, especially, in scientific endeavours,” Mr Hoover said. This goal, Mr Hoover said, had resulted in Chinese Communist intelligence activities in the United States—overt as well as covert—to get needed material, particularly in the scientific field. He said one clandestine effort was thwarted in 1967 when a Chinese-American tried to send electronic equipment to Hong Kong by way of Canada. Mr Hoover said informants had made “deep penetrations in intelligence operations” jn America by Communist bloc countries, particularly Russia, Cuba and China. But, without specifying which countries, Mr Hoover added that these Communist

intelligence services also tried to penetrate his own F. 8.1., the Central Intelligence Agency (C.1.A.), State and Defence Departments. He did not mention the degree of success. Mr Hoover said that the F. 8.1. was faced with the following situation: “Red China has been flood-

ing the country with its propaganda and there are more than 300,000 Chinese in the United States, some of whom could be susceptible to recruitment either through ethnic ties or hostage situations because of relatives in Communist China.

“In addition, up to 20,000 Chinese immigrants can come here each year, and this provides a means to send illegal agents into our nation." He said there were active Chinese Communist sympathisers in the Western hemisphere in a position to aid in operations against the United States.

“A growing problem concerns the 40,000 Hong Kongbased Chinese seamen, many actually living bn the China mainland. We are aware of situations where they have served as couriers in intelligence operations.” On any given day, Mr Hoover said, three-fourths of these crewmen were on ships round the world, and about 27,000 were members of the Chinese Communist - dominated Hong Kong Seamen’s Union. Mr Hoover said that there

were thousands of entries made by these crewmen into United States cities each year when their ships docked in America.

Although it was not necessary for a seaman to desert ship to perform an ittelligence assignment, Mr Hoover said, it was noted that there were more than 700 desertions by Chinese crewmen in the United States in 1967, and this accounted for more than 80 per cent of the total desertions by Chinese crewmen throughout the world during that year. It was significant to note that desertions by Chinese crewmen jumped to some 930 persons during 1968.