Washington DC

Mamtimin Ala, President of the East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE), has expressed serious concern over what he described as the extensive reach of Chinese influence operations within the United States.

In a post shared on social media platform X, Ala claimed that nearly 2,000 organisations connected to China’s United Front system are operating globally, with around half of them allegedly active within the United States.

“These groups have embedded themselves across American society—from the highest political institutions to strategically sensitive regions,” Ala wrote. He alleged that together they constitute a broad intelligence and influence apparatus, arguing that its scale rivals or exceeds that of Cold War-era Soviet operations. According to him, the objective extends beyond intelligence gathering and is aimed at undermining the United States internally.

Ala further warned that such activities are sustained by individuals operating from within the system, whom he said remain largely unidentified. “The threat is already inside, supported by unseen insiders who could eventually facilitate a takeover of power,” he stated. While acknowledging that many of these organisations are known and monitored, he claimed that those enabling them from behind the scenes have not been publicly exposed. He added that any success of these efforts would stem not from strategic superiority, but from the depth of internal influence.

Mamtimin Ala, an Australian-Uyghur political leader, academic, and activist, was born in 1971 in Artush, East Turkistan. He assumed office as the fifth President of the East Turkistan Government in Exile in November 2023. Since then, he has been advocating internationally for Uyghur rights, political self-determination, and global recognition of alleged human rights violations in the region. Prior to his presidency, he served as ETGE’s European representative and has worked to mobilise the global East Turkistani diaspora while engaging foreign governments on issues of repression and cultural erasure.

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The United Front is a long-standing political strategy employed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), involving networks of organisations and influential individuals aligned with or guided by the party to advance its interests abroad. Analysts and security experts have repeatedly cautioned about the global scope of United Front activities, citing their use of lobbying, propaganda, and intelligence-related efforts. Ala’s remarks reflect ongoing concerns among exile groups regarding the implications of these operations for US national security.