CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis argues that unlike the Cold War era rivalry with the USSR, the competition with China is primarily economic.
Michael Ellis, the CIA’s Deputy Director, has stated that China’s economic strength presents a unique challenge to the United States as they vie for global influence.
In an interview with Axios on Wednesday, Ellis described China as“the existential threat to American security in a way that we really have never confronted before.” He elaborated that the current competition differs from the Cold War with the Soviet Union, primarily playing out in the economic sphere.
Ellis emphasized that technological dominance in areas like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology, semiconductors, and advanced energy storage will be crucial in determining the outcome of this geopolitical competition.
He also discussed the CIA’s shifting priorities, noting the increasing limitations of traditional human intelligence gathering methods. He stressed the need for an “evolution in operational tradecraft,” stating that “While some of the tools and techniques from the 1960s or 70s might still work today, a lot of them need to be updated and refreshed.”
To address this challenge, Ellis mentioned the agency’s efforts to recruit an “elite workforce” with expertise in science and engineering, aiming to establish “the ultimate meritocracy at the CIA.”
Beijing has consistently accused Washington of maintaining a “Cold War mentality” and pursuing global dominance instead of fostering a cooperative, multipolar world.
The US and China are currently engaged in a prolonged trade dispute, which has intensified under President Donald Trump’s administration through the imposition of tariffs on Chinese imports, prompting retaliatory measures from Beijing.
Following recent discussions, both countries released a joint statement committing to resolving their differences through “mutual opening, continued communication, cooperation, and mutual respect.”
This week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reiterated the Trump administration’s intention to refocus its attention from European matters towards China.
During a Senate hearing, Rubio told lawmakers that “Every dollar we spend on this [Ukraine] conflict in Europe is distracting both our focus and our resources away from the potential for a much more serious, much more cataclysmic confrontation in the Indo-Pacific.”