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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

7/ A follow-up to my @thejamestownfdn.bsky.social analysis on PRC #CognitiveWarfare targeting Japan's security normalization. ⚡️ jamestown.org/cognitive-wa...

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

6/ This piece is the second in a series on PRC cognitive warfare targeting Japan, with many more coming on PRC cross-domain cognitive warfare targeting like-minded democracies.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

5/ Japan's intelligence reforms may have addressed the espionage gap. Yet PRC cross-domain ops are cognitive warfare at heart – designed to polarise opinion, sow confusion, erode trust in Takaichi administration + fracture the political consensus security normalization requires.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

4/ #Japan's information space was considered resistant. Language barrier. Five media conglomerates. Strong domestic filter. That filter is vaporizing. #AI is collapsing the language barrier. Social media bypasses the gatekeepers. #Beijing is exploiting both — simultaneously.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

3/ Multilayer #TTPs 📍Surface — invokes Japan's wartime history to equate security normalization with authoritarian surveillance 📍Beneath — "domestic opposition within Japan" = unattributed claims, slippery slope logic 📍Core — Beijing's commentary, repackaged as Japanese voices

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

2/ Cross-platform dissemination chain 📍Xinhua reporter's hawkish opinion piece – published in Chinese 📍Translated into Japanese – byline gone, "commentary" label disappeared 📍Repackaged as a neutral wire report 📍Republished by Docomo, AU, Livedoor + Chiba TV shortly after

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

1/ Why it matters ⚠️ Not spam acc. Not pure propaganda. A direct pipeline — China's flagship state media into Japan's info channels. PRC Cognitive warfare is targeting the political consensus Japan's constitutional amendment requires. FYI Article 9: 50% in favor, 48% opposed

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

My latest @asia.nikkei.com documents a direct PRC #InfluenceOperations pipeline penetrating Japan's information space via news aggregators & regional TV broadcasters. 📍Xinhua (CN) → Xinhua (JPN) → Docomo / AU + Chiba TV → Japanese audience ⚡️Threads x 7 asia.nikkei.com/opinion/chin...

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

7/ #Japan has been developing countermeasures. These steps meaningfully build resilience but their effectiveness against PRC cognitive warfare remains to be seen. Inadequate #stratcom (as in #Kumamoto missile deployment case) is a vulnerability that PRC will continue to exploit.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

6/ PRC IOs that seek to amplify domestic opposition & magnify division in Japanese society would be effective precisely because the content is not foreign but based on local voices. This is all that PRC needs to do, however, to stymie #Takaichi’s proposed constitutional amendment

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

5/ #Economic Coercion: Rare earth export controls, tourism restrictions — framed explicitly as direct responses to Tokyo's security normalization > aims to shape Japanese public perception of Takaichi's security advancement, and erode public support for both #Takaichi and the LDP

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

4/ #Diplomatic Coercion: Sanctions, #Lawfare, #TransnationalRepression – the coercive mechanism here is primarily psychological. Being named/ surveilled/ placed on #PRC target list is the first rung of an escalation ladder designed to deter other lawmakers from standing up to CCP

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

3/ The Full Dissemination Chain on how PRC #InfluenceOperations penetrate Japanese information channels via mainstream news aggregators: #PRC > Xinhua (CN) > Xinhua (JPN) > #AU + #Docomo > Japanese Audience 📍Original #OSINT in Chinese/ English/ Japanese

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

2/ #InfluenceOperations: Amplifying domestic opposition, exploiting communication gaps, and manufacturing the impression of nationwide resistance where none exists ⚠️PRC IOs > penetrating Japan's information space, which has long been considered resistant to foreign interference

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

1/ Why it matters⚠️ #PRC cross-domain #CognitiveWarfare is attempting to fracture Japan’s domestic political consensus on security normalization – and thereby, obstructing the political conditions that #Tokyo’s constitutional amendments specifically required.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

My latest @thejamestownfdn.bsky.social on PRC #CognitiveWarfare targeting Japan’s Security Normalization & Constitutional Amendment 📍Cross-Domain Ops > Cognitive Warfare at heart 📍Full dissemination chain – PRC IOs > news aggregators > Japan's information space jamestown.org/cognitive-wa...

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

4/ #Diplomatic Coercion: Sanctions, lawfare, #TransnationalRepression – the coercive mechanism here is primarily psychological. Being named/ surveilled/ placed on PRC target list is the first rung of an escalation ladder designed to deter other lawmakers from standing up to CCP

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

3/ The Full Dissemination Chain on how PRC #InfluenceOperations penetrate Japanese information channels via mainstream news aggregators #PRC > Xinhua (CN) > Xinhua (JPN) > #AU + #Docomo > Japanese Audience

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

1/ Why it matters⚠️ PRC cross-domain cognitive warfare is attempting to fracture Japan’s domestic political consensus on security normalization – and thereby, obstructing the political conditions that Tokyo’s constitutional amendments specifically required.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

My latest at Crossing – How the #LinChiLing controversy reveals a deeper strategic gap in #Taiwan's cultural #CognitiveWarfare The cognitive battlefield Taiwan hasn't figured out yet – how its own artists could be reverse-weaponized against PRC's #UnitedFrontWork in pop culture

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

6/ 台北或許沒有北京的人民幣攻勢，但台灣有中國沒有的自由，有文化的深度與緯度，有最美的風景。所以有《人選之人——造浪者》，有《我們與惡的距離》，有《島嶼天光》——無關製作費，無關是否或有多少粒星演出，那是只有在自由土地裡才能長出來的聲音。

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

5/ 當北京的大外宣機器在此戰場深耕二十載，台灣能做的，不是只找一個林志玲進董事會。台灣要走的更穩更遠，是要用台灣藝人告訴台灣人，自己是誰，告訴世界，台灣是什麼——不是北京筆下「中華文化的一部分」，而是台灣，僅是台灣。

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

4/ 林志玲說未曾想到這個稱謂的重量，比想像中沉重很多。台灣人這三個字本就乘載重量，只是到2026的今天，文化場上認知作戰，似乎還未想清楚自己站在哪裡，握著什麼武器，又守著什麼陣地這場爭議說明台灣還沒想清楚。當北京過去二十年都在利用台灣藝人統戰––台灣，要如何以自己的藝人進行反向操作？

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

3/ 箭還未離弦，台灣自己卻先讓它落地了。不是因為她親不親中——是因為整場輿論一直沒有離開過一個藝人的政治立場，從來沒有人問，那是一個什麼樣的位置，她在那個位置能為台灣做些什麼，而 #台灣此刻最需要的是什麼。

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

2/ 在此戰略考量上，林志玲親不親中不重要。作為一個研究中共 #認知作戰的人，我能確定，在文化戰場上，誰能將人才化為戰略，誰就能掌握敘事主導權。 #台灣似乎開始明白這件事了。所以建文策院，六年後的今天找林志玲。這個方向是對的，但台灣的投入還是相對零散，被動，缺乏一個前瞻性的策略佈局。

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

1/ #文策院任命林志玲為董事，想要把其過往的國際經驗和人脈，化為實際的「戰鬥力」，是操作性考量。北京把台灣人變成影響台灣人的統戰工具，文策院以台灣人作為讓世界看見台灣的橋樑，兩者手法目的不同——但他們站在同一個戰場上，爭的是同一批人心，同一個關於 #台灣是誰的故事。

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

#林志玲親不 #親中不重要——七天，一場請辭，這場爭論本身說明台灣有一件事還沒清楚當北京過去二十年都在利用台灣藝人作為 #統戰工具，台灣要如何以自己的藝人進行反向操作？新鮮出爐在〈換日線〉的文章談談這場台灣還沒想清楚的文化 #認知戰 ⚡️Threads x7 crossing.cw.com.tw/article/20760

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Reposted by Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓

Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

My latest @thejamestownfdn.bsky.social on PRC #Consular Pop-ups in Canada 📍105 gray zone activities in 22 cities across 11 provinces 📍All PRC consulates & the PRC Embassy in Canada are involved 📍Sub-national #UnitedFront work targeting most provincial capitals ⚡️x 8 jamestown.org/consular-pop...

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

8/ Also worked on PRC on Chinese consulates’ Gray Zone pop-up events in #Japan (previously published w/@japantimes.co.jp bsky.app/profile/imle...

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

7/ This is a follow-up research on PRC consulate gray zone pop-up events in #UnitedStates (previously published w/ @thejamestownfdn.bsky.social For more details, see bsky.app/profile/imle...

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

6/ The specific objectives for gray zone consular activities remain unclear. Yet by expanding capabilities to influence provincial capitals, #Beijing could target a wide range of political/ strategic sectors, incl. #Canada’s critical minerals, which exist in every province

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

5/ Why this strategy 📍PRC #IOs faced significant pushback at the national level in Canada 📍Focus on provincial capitals > exploit gaps & advance its united front work in relatively untapped areas 📍Cities like Toronto already have a well-developed #UnitedFront network

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

4/ Sub-National #UnitedFront Work 📍Maximize influence on provincial policymaking 📍Gain leverage to push back against unfavorable federal policies at the provincial level 📍Shape policy at the national level = Leverage local power to encircle the central authority

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

3/ CAN vs #US operations 📍 Large-scale & balanced distribution of events in Canada >> a more coordinated and centralized country-wide strategy 📍Events > held in more controlled settings 📍Target provincial capitals & smaller regional centers vs US in major metropolitan areas

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

2/ Situation in #Canada 📍105 gray zone activities in 22 cities across 11 provinces 📍All PRC #Consulates & the PRC #Embassy in Canada are involved 📍Venues: hotel conference rooms/ Chinese cultural centers/ university classrooms/ clubhouses 📍Targeted 10 provincial capitals

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

1/ Why it matters ⚠️ 📍Serve as a mechanism for political activities & #InfluenceOperations 📍Advance local united front network 📍Unclear legality 📍Create "new norms" that challenge the diplomatic #norms & international #RulesBasedOrder

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

5/ HK govt says it is discussing replacing bamboo scaffolding—a move that could benefit China’s manufacturing industry. The conversation is spinning out of focus, framing bamboo as the “cause” of the #HongKongFire when #corruption and the regulatory system should be the focus.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

4/ PRC media took the opportunity to further amplify the narrative that bamboo scaffolding is unsafe (vs China had been using metal ones instead)

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

3/ On Nov 27, 07:19 An acc Niutanqin 牛彈琴 – owned by Liu Hong, a CCP member & the current Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Xinhua News Agency – published an article on WeChat and ifeng, claiming that the bamboo scaffolding + careless workers + substandard nets made the fire inevitable

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

2/ Nov 27, 03:12 HKT @guardiannews published an article titled "Bamboo scaffolding may be to blame for spread of Hong Kong tower block fire". Other UK media outlets appear to be publishing similar content.

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

1/ On Nov 26, 21:37, the official Douyin account of Phoenix Real Estate (凤凰网房产) posted a video linking the #HongKongFire to bamboo scaffolding, claiming China now uses metal instead and implying bamboo caused the fire

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

4/ And of course, #XueJian is involved Xue Jian + Osaka Consulate keep showing up in gray-zone pop-up events FYI. These events likely violate international law, strengthen PRC’s #UnitedFront network in Japan, and bolster its political mobilization capabilities for future operations

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

3/ #Okinawa – highest number of pop-ups Given its strategic significance in the first-island chain, Beijing could mobilize #unitedfront network to amplify its narratives "undetermined status of Ryuku"/ instill anti-American sentiment/ incite #independence movement on the island

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

2/ Situation in #Japan 📍60 pop-ups, 25 prefectures, 21 cities in Japan 📍Latest pop-up > Sendai Sunmall Ichibancho, 2025-09-21 📍An upcoming one (by Osaka Consulate) is scheduled for Monday in a hotel conference room at the Crown Palais New Hankyu in #Kochi

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Sze-Fung Lee 李紫楓 @imleeszefung.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

1/ Follow-up research on PRC consulate gray zone #Pop-up events > consulates providing consular services such as passport renewal in the form of 'pop-up' events at non-designated diplomatic facilities e.g. clubhouses (previously published w/ @thejamestownfdn.bsky.social bsky.app/profile/imle...

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