Wow. Ai Wei Wei rolling out straight-up Beijing talking points, almost totally unchallenged.

I think he may be Beijing's most successful transnational repression story yet.

Selected excerpts for this truly whack interview:

China has “No intention to invade another nation” 🤡

“Taiwan is an issue between Taiwan and China” 🤡

Starmer “made a good visit” to China because British people are “pragmatic” and “independent” in their foreign policy. (ed: could have been drafted in Beijing).

Q: Do you feel china is censoring more than 10 years ago?

“China has much more confidence” (ed: 🤯🤡🤡)

"I’m not attacking the state”

“I am not angry” with the state

Chinese authorities "don’t care about tweets" (ed: 🤡 they really care - a lot of the evidence against imprisoned, innocent journalist Jimmy Lai is tweets)

Early in the interview, Ai Wei Wei talks about his desire to visit his mother every year. The plan fact is that he would not be able to do this if he were still producing the work and statements of the like for which he has become famous. It would not be surprising if his visits were being permitted at the price of his silence, or even in exchange for his agreement to farm out this unsophisticated propaganda.

Sadly, this isn't far-fetched and well within the CCP modus operandi. In fact, it's pretty textbook:

1. Wants to see his mother every year
   
2. Just seen her after 10 years
   
3. Sudden thirst for interviews after protracted silence
   
4. Reversal of well established criticism of the Party State, adoption of Beijing talking points.
   
   Throw in a bit of family intimidation, and you're there. Transnational repression works, people. And governments are far too slow to develop a response.