Survey Finds Beijing’s Grip Deepening Worldwide as North America and the Caribbean Emerge as Vulnerable Fronts

OTTAWA — The People’s Republic of China’s global influence is deepening under President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative — a strategy that United States experts say blends infrastructure diplomacy with clandestine and coercive methods, often relying on what they describe as “strategic corruption.” A new global survey of Beijing’s reach from Taiwan’s Doublethink Lab shows the PRC expanding its presence across societies, economies, and political systems, with the sharpest gains in regions once considered secure within the American sphere of influence.

As in 2022, Pakistan, Cambodia, and Singapore remain the most influenced countries in the Index.

But in North America, the fastest-rising domain of Chinese influence was domestic politics, most starkly in Canada, where intelligence services confirmed “clandestine and deceptive” PRC interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections to support candidates sympathetic to Beijing.

For the nations most directly tied to Beijing’s security apparatus, Pakistan exemplifies a model of long-term strategic reliance: a partnership anchored in deep integration with the Belt and Road Initiative, close military and security ties, and heavy dependence on Chinese digital and telecommunications infrastructure.

Cambodia illustrates a more direct form of state capture, with Beijing providing overt support to the ruling elite while extending partnerships to local security agencies, underwritten by large Chinese investments in infrastructure and technology.

Singapore, by contrast, reflects the sophisticated informational and cultural dimensions of PRC influence: its dominant Chinese-language media, strong trade and technology integration with Chinese firms, and a network of academic partnerships with PRC universities align it closely with Beijing’s interests, even as it appears to be a sovereign global hub in its own right.

The China Index 2024, which maps influence across 101 countries using nearly one hundred indicators, confirms Beijing’s strongest grip remains in South and Southeast Asia. But the most dramatic growth is now recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa, South America, and Central America and the Caribbean.

Although Asia remains the center of gravity, the report places North America higher in the narrative of global vulnerability than in past years. Ranked as the fifth most influenced region, the cumulative score rose from 38.3 in 2022 to 40.7 in 2024, underscoring how Beijing’s activities have expanded beyond traditional trade channels into the digital and political arenas.

Technology remains one of the fastest-growing domains of PRC influence. The spread of Chinese consumer electronics and the quiet integration of PRC-linked technology into sensitive infrastructure, including seaports, has raised what the report calls “acute cybersecurity and data-security concerns.”

At the same time, the cultural and political impact of Chinese-owned social media platforms has become impossible to ignore. TikTok, in particular, now plays “a central role in influencing public opinion and digital culture,” with its algorithm shaping the information diet of tens of millions of young North Americans. Beijing’s potential sway over such a platform creates a channel not only for propaganda but also for the subtle amplification of narratives that align with its foreign policy interests.

The PRC’s information operations are reinforced by more traditional outlets. In Canada, Chinese-language media groups with links to the mainland continue to broadcast pro-Beijing narratives, particularly on flashpoint issues such as Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Xinjiang. Parallel to this, the Index documents the expanding presence of diaspora organizations that host cultural events, community initiatives, and political outreach activities — often echoing the PRC’s positions while cultivating influence within immigrant communities.

In the United States, the Index highlights intensifying lobbying by Chinese-linked entities, prompting lawmakers in Washington to advance bills aimed at forcing transparency in foreign influence operations and curbing Beijing’s ability to shape policymaking from the inside.

Academic collaboration remains another contested front. Talent-recruitment programs and joint research partnerships persist despite documented cases of intellectual property theft, underscoring how North America’s openness to innovation is also a point of vulnerability. The Index suggests that while Europe has erected stronger institutional safeguards, North America is increasingly exposed at the intersection of digital influence and electoral politics.

From Africa to Latin America, the concerns are deeper. Sub-Saharan Africa recorded the largest increase in scores since 2022, rising from 35.8 to 43.5. Chinese influence there is most visible in foreign policy, technology, and military domains. Beijing has become a key partner in building digital payment systems, smart cities, and green-energy projects, while embedding itself in the region’s security architecture through military training, arms sales, and a growing naval presence. Leaders from Ghana to Zimbabwe have embraced Chinese-built platforms that critics say carry surveillance risks, even as Beijing’s governance model is promoted through the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

In Central America and the Caribbean, influence has surged more quickly than anywhere else. The average regional score jumped from 29.4 in 2022 to 34.0 in 2024. Diplomatic recognition switches from Taiwan to Beijing have opened the door to infrastructure projects — ports, stadiums, telecommunications systems — often delivered as aid or concessional finance. PRC state media content is now broadcast in local languages, and local journalists are brought into Beijing’s training programs. Panama, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and El Salvador all demonstrate how Beijing has gained traction in a region long dominated by Washington.

All of this points to a strategy of encirclement, as Beijing works to expand its influence across the United States’ immediate neighborhood.

South America is not far behind. Brazil has signed dozens of agreements with Beijing covering trade, agriculture, and technology. Chile has emerged as one of Latin America’s most influenced states, propelled by a combination of deepening media partnerships, military exchanges, and Confucius Institute expansion.

Europe remains the least influenced region, with only a modest rise in average scores, from 24.2 to 25.6. Strong institutional safeguards, free press traditions, and skepticism about Beijing’s motives have slowed its advance. Countries such as Italy have formally withdrawn from the Belt and Road Initiative, while the European Union has introduced new security packages to protect research and dual-use technologies. Still, Beijing continues to experiment with softer routes of influence, investing in academic collaborations, cultural exchanges, and targeted information campaigns.