By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
CTN News-Chiang Rai TimesCTN News-Chiang Rai TimesCTN News-Chiang Rai Times
  • Home
  • Chiang Rai News
  • News
    • Crime
    • Northern Thailand
    • Southern Thailand
    • News Asia
    • India
    • China
    • World News
  • Business
    • Sponsored
    • PR News
  • Entertainment
    • Lifestyles
  • Health
  • Politics
  • Social Media
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Weather
Reading: Philippines Investigates U.S Military Anti-Sinovac Propaganda Campaign
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
CTN News-Chiang Rai TimesCTN News-Chiang Rai Times
Font ResizerAa
  • Chiang Rai News
  • Regonal News
  • Politics
  • Northern Thailand
  • Crime
  • Business
  • Sports
  • Weather
  • Home
  • Chiang Rai News
  • News
    • Crime
    • Northern Thailand
    • Southern Thailand
    • News Asia
    • India
    • China
    • World News
  • Business
    • Sponsored
    • PR News
  • Entertainment
    • Lifestyles
  • Health
  • Politics
  • Social Media
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Weather
Follow US
  • Advertise
  • Advertise
© 2022 Foxiz News Network. Ruby Design Company. All Rights Reserved.
CTN News-Chiang Rai Times > News Asia > Philippines Investigates U.S Military Anti-Sinovac Propaganda Campaign
News Asia

Philippines Investigates U.S Military Anti-Sinovac Propaganda Campaign

Anna Wong
Last updated: January 12, 2025 7:58 am
Anna Wong - Senior Editor
11 months ago
Share
sinovac, vaccine, thailand, Philippines
Thai Health Ministry Defends its Use of Sinovac Covid-19 Vaccine
SHARE

The U.S. Defense Department has admitted that it lied to the Philippines and spread propaganda aimed at disparaging China’s Sinovac vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a June 25 document cited by a former top government official earlier this month.

The U.S. response to the Philippines was recounted in a podcast by Harry Roque, who served as spokesman for former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Reuters subsequently reviewed the document, which hasn’t been publicly released by either government.

The news agency was able to verify its contents with a source familiar with the U.S. response.

“It is true that the (Department of Defense) did message Philippines audiences questioning the safety and efficacy of Sinovac,” according to the document, which references information sent from the U.S. Defense Department to the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs and Department of National Defense. According to the document, the Pentagon also conceded it had “made some missteps in our COVID related messaging” but assured the Philippines that the military “has vastly improved oversight and accountability of information operations” since 2022.

The U.S. admission followed a June 14 Reuters investigation that revealed how the Pentagon launched a secret psychological operation to discredit Chinese vaccines and other COVID aid in 2020 and 2021, at the height of the pandemic. As a result of the Reuters investigation, the Philippine Senate Foreign Relations Committee launched a hearing into the matter and sought a response from the U.S.

According to the June 25 document, Pentagon officials concluded its anti-vax campaign was “misaligned with our priorities.” It says the U.S. military told Filipino officials that operatives “ceased COVID-related messaging related to COVID-19 origins and COVID-19 vaccines in August 2021.”

The Philippines’ defense and foreign affairs departments did not respond to requests for comment about the U.S. military’s admission that it ran the propaganda program.

Philippines Investigates Anti-VAX Campaign

A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department referred Reuters to the Defense Department for comment. Pentagon spokesman Pete Nguyen declined to confirm the U.S. response cited in the document. But he acknowledged the Pentagon did distribute “social media content about the safety and efficacy of Sinovac.”

At the time the Pentagon launched its campaign, national security officials in Washington worried that China was exploiting the pandemic to negotiate important geopolitical deals and undermine U.S. alliances internationally by sending aid to the Philippines and other nations.

The clandestine psychological operation uncovered by Reuters wasn’t limited to the Philippines. It also targeted developing countries across Central Asia, the Middle East and Southeast Asia in 2020 and 2021. The Philippines and those other nations were, at the time, heavily reliant on China’s Sinvoac to inoculate their populations against the deadly virus.

Among Southeast Asian countries including Thailand, the Philippines was among those hit hardest by the coronavirus. By 2024, COVID had killed almost 67,000 Filipinos, and the number of infections there had reached more than 4 million, according to World Health Organization data.

Working with a group of defense contractors and other non-military partners, the U.S. used networks of online bots and other phony social media accounts to influence foreign audiences, Reuters found.

Fake Social Media Accounts

Fake Social Media Accounts

The news agency identified a network of hundreds of fake accounts on X, formerly Twitter, that closely matched descriptions shared by former U.S. military officials familiar with the Philippines operation. When Reuters asked X about the accounts, the social media company removed the profiles after independently determining they were part of a coordinated bot campaign. The Reuters article showcased a handful of these posts as examples of the messaging.

Pentagon spokesman Nguyen said an initial review by the Defense Department last month “found that the U.S. military was not responsible for the troubling social media content related to the Philippines” cited in the Reuters report. Asked whether the social media accounts with those particular posts were handled by contractors or other non-military partners working on behalf of the U.S. government, Nguyen declined to say. He also declined to answer questions about U.S. military anti-vax propaganda efforts across Central Asia and the Middle East.

In exposing the Pentagon’s anti-vax propaganda campaign, Reuters interviewed more than two dozen current and former U.S officials, military contractors, social media analysts, academic researchers and public health experts. The health experts called the propaganda campaign indefensible, saying it put innocent lives at risk.

In a statement to Chinese media after the Reuters investigation in June, a Sinovac spokeswoman blasted the U.S. military. “Stigmatizing vaccination will lead to a series of consequences, such as a lower inoculation rate, the outbreak and spread of disease, social panic and insecurity, as well as crises of confidence in science and public health,” said Sinovac spokeswoman Yuan Youwei.

The Reuters investigation has spurred a Senate investigation in the Philippines led by Senator Imee Marcos, head of the Foreign Relations committee. At a hearing on June 25, Marcos described the U.S. military campaign as “evil, wicked, dangerous, unethical.” She questioned whether it violated international law and wondered whether the Philippines had any legal recourse.

Source: Reuters

TAGGED:PhilippinesSinovac
Share This Article
Facebook Email Print
ByAnna Wong
Senior Editor
Follow:
Anna Wong serves as the editor of the Chiang Rai Times, bringing precision and clarity to the publication. Her leadership ensures that the news reaches readers with accuracy and insight. With a keen eye for detail,
Previous Article Pakistan Uses Terrorism and Proxy War to Stay Relevant, says India's Modi Pakistan Uses Terrorism and Proxy War to Stay Relevant, Says India’s Modi
Next Article Internet Firewall Confirmed by Pakistani Minister, Censorship Concerns Rejected Internet Firewall Confirmed by Pakistani Minister, Censorship Concerns Rejected

SOi Dog FOundation

Trending News

Military Parade in Washington
Military Parade in Washington Marks Army’s 250th Anniversary Amid Praise and Protest
World News
BI Launches Manhunt After Politician Melissa Hortman Murdered
FBI Launches Manhunt After Politician Melissa Hortman Murdered
World News
Health benefits of Creatine
Medical Experts Praising the Health Benefits of Creatine
Health
Walking's Power Against Chronic Back Pain
New Study Highlights Walking’s Power Against Chronic Back Pain
Health

Make Optimized Content in Minutes

rightblogger

Download Our App

ctn dark

The Chiang Rai Times was launched in 2007 as Communi Thai a print magazine that was published monthly on stories and events in Chiang Rai City.

About Us

  • CTN News Journalist
  • Contact US
  • Download Our App
  • About CTN News

Policy

  • Cookie Policy
  • CTN Privacy Policy
  • Our Advertising Policy
  • Advertising Disclaimer

Top Categories

  • News
  • Crime
  • Chiang Rai News
  • Northern Thailand

Find Us on Social Media

Copyright © 2025 CTN News Media Inc.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?