US democracy. Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

The National Endowment for Democracy (NED), as one of the US government's main "foot soldiers," "white gloves" and "democracy crusaders," has become the mastermind behind separatist riots, color revolutions and political crises around the world, subverting lawful governments and cultivating pro-US puppet forces under the pretext of promoting democracy, said a fact sheet released by Chinese Foreign Ministry on Saturday. 



China has long been a key target of NED's infiltration and subversion activities. NED invests heavily in anti-China programs aimed at splitting Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong regions from China, the article said, noting that any attempt to interfere in other countries' internal affairs in the name of democracy is unpopular and doomed to failure.

The US has long used democracy as a tool and weapon to undermine democracy in the name of democracy, to incite division and confrontation, and to meddle in other countries' internal affairs, causing catastrophic consequences, the article said. NED has subverted lawful governments and cultivated pro-US puppet forces around the world under the pretext of promoting democracy. 

Established in 1983 as a bipartisan institution, NED is nominally an NGO that provides support for democracy abroad, but in fact, it relies on continuous financial support from the White House and Congress, and takes orders from the US government. 

Through the provision of funding, it has manipulated and directed NGOs around the world to export American values, conduct subversion, infiltration and sabotage, and incite the "democratic movements" in target countries and regions. It has become the mastermind behind separatist riots, color revolutions, political crises, lies and rumors, and infiltration around the world, with an ever-growing list of evils, the article said. 

According to data released on its website in 2020, NED provided over $10 million of grants for 69 China-related programs within one year, which were aimed to deliver various activities endangering China's political and social stability.

As the main source of funding for "Xinjiang independence" organizations, NED claims to have provided $8.76 million of grants for various "Uygur organizations" between 2004 and 2020 such as the notorious, terrorism-related "World Uyghur Congress." 

NED President Carl Gershman openly claimed that to solve the problems in Xinjiang, a color revolution must be held in China and that regime change can turn the country into a federal republic. Gershman also sounded support of the idea of "East Turkestan" to embolden "Xinjiang independence" forces. He also called for global attention to the so-called human rights issues in Xinjiang and sought to launch an international alliance dedicated to this matter and to sanction China.

What's more, it has been reaching its hands into the internal affairs of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Since 1997, one of NED's affiliated organizations, the National Democratic Institute, has published 18 assessment reports aimed at influencing Hong Kong's "democratic development," and in 2014, it directed and funded the opposition and young radicals in orchestrating the illegal "Occupy Central" movement. 

In the turbulence in 2019, NED went from behind the scenes to the front, directly engaging with major anti-China destabilizing forces in Hong Kong, and offering subsidies and training to those involved in the riots. In May 2019, individuals attempting to sow trouble in Hong Kong, including founding chairman of Hong Kong's Democratic Party Martin Lee and founding chairman of "Demosisto" Nathan Law, visited the US to attend an NED event, openly begging for US intervention in Hong Kong's proposed legislative amendments.

In 2020, according to NED's website, $2 million were spent on 11 Hong Kong-related projects, with a particular focus on disrupting LegCo elections. 

The article noted peace and development is the theme in today's world, and that the trend toward greater democracy in international relations is unstoppable. Any attempt to interfere in other countries' internal affairs in the name of democracy is unpopular and doomed to failure.

Global Times