China's influence operations offer a glimpse into the future of information warfare

intelligence experts generally agree that Russia is better than any other country at spreading disinformation to undermine voter confidence leading up to the election, security experts have been preoccupied with a longer-term threat.

They fear that the Chinese government's disinformation operations pose a far more insidious menace to democracy that will continue well past Election Day.

It's a pattern so troubling to global intelligence officials that last week, Ken McCallum, the incoming intelligence chief of the British domestic security service, MI5, said that if Russia's influence operations are like bad weather, China's growing operations are like climate change — far more destructive.

While Chinese government officials vigorously deny that they are interfering in the presidential election, they also stress that they plan to preserve their reputation on the global stage.

As trade relationships increase around the globe, China does not want to appear as a rogue operator, experts said.

"Basically, the only business we do with Russia is arms control and purchases of Stolichnaya vodka," said a senior congressional official briefed on intelligence matters who was not authorized to speak publicly and asked not to be identified.

To do that, the Chinese Communist Party has been building what it calls "discourse power" by shaping a narrative that its model of government is superior to democratic government structures.

The goal, experts said, is to develop more influence overseas, particularly among America's political and military allies in Southeast Asia, who have been alienated by President Donald Trump, and to ultimately replace the U.S.

Bookie said they have been using both covert and overt tactics to manipulate public opinion, including outright disinformation.

"We have seen more of a willingness to engage in more aggressive influence operations, including some of the stuff we would associate with Russia," Bookie said.

"Ultimately, China doesn't hesitate to use smoke, mirrors and misdirection to influence Americans," FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a speech in July to the Hudson Institute, a Washington think tank.

Many of the accounts had previously been used to push spamlike promotional links for companies, and they would tweet in a wide range of languages, including Chinese, Indonesian, Arabic, English and Spanish.

China's direct efforts to influence the presidential election have been limited.

Briefing the congressional intelligence committees last month, National Intelligence Director John Ratcliffe said dozens of lawmakers had been more broadly targeted by Chinese influence campaigns, a fact first reported by The Hill newspaper

An intelligence official who was not authorized to speak publicly and asked not to be identified said the intelligence community "has become aware of Chinese influence operations targeting members of Congress at a rate of approximately six times that of Russia and 12 times that of Iran."

Still, the senior congressional official who was briefed on intelligence matters said, China's efforts to influence lawmakers are intended not to influence the election of one candidate over another but to broadly expose flaws in the U.S