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See the full story · 2 sourcesPatel described the FBI's initiatives with what he called ‘non-traditional partners’ as selective and limited to specific types of transnational crimes
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FBI Director Kash Patel has forged new law enforcement partnerships with China and Russia , two nations long considered rivals to the United States, over the past year.
The initiative aims to enlist these countries as allies in the global fight against transnational crime , specifically targeting issues such as fentanyl trafficking, cyber fraud and child sexual exploitation.
These collaborations have involved personnel exchanges, with Chinese law enforcement officials visiting the United States and FBI agents traveling to China to work on joint cases and share intelligence. Under these arrangements, the FBI and Chinese officers have also conducted joint raids and arrests.
Patel recently returned from a trip to Beijing in late July, and a similar visit to Russia is tentatively scheduled for October, according to FBI officials. In exclusive interviews with Reuters , Patel characterized these initiatives with what he termed "non-traditional partners" as highly selective and limited to specific types of transnational crimes, including global child pornography networks and cyber scam centers that prey on Americans.
Internally known as "working groups," these partnerships mark a significant departure from previous approaches. However, they have sparked concerns within the broader counterintelligence community regarding the potential risks of sharing sensitive domestic security information with authoritarian regimes that are working to undermine the United States economically and militarily worldwide.
In May, the FBI, China's Ministry of Public Security and Dubai police worked together in "Operation Sand Dollar," a major raid on a cyber scam center in Dubai that led to 300 arrests, $300 million seized and thousands of trafficked workers freed, the FBI said. In at least one case, a suspect inside China who was accused of "serious violent crimes" was repatriated to the United States, according to Chinese state media.
U.S. officials have long portrayed Russia and China as exporters of crime instead of potential allies in combating it, not to mention sources of espionage aimed at American interests worldwide.
Patel, appointed by President Donald Trump, said such risks can be managed.
"They are both new and dynamic relationships, and we are extremely mindful of their adversarial approach on many matters," Patel said. "They are not going to stop, but if we can go and have wins for America, then we must engage."
The current relationship began with Trump's visit to China in May 2025 and was followed by two trips by Patel to China. Patel said the cooperation has expanded across four working groups: cyber fraud, violent crimes against children, counternarcotics and a fugitive task force.
As part of the partnership, Patel has brought officials from China's Ministry of Public Security, or MPS, to multiple FBI facilities in the United States to share intelligence and investigative information.
"Every month, they send their working-level MPS officers here, and the following month we go there," Patel said. "They are speaking with us daily, which has also never happened before."
Asked about joint law enforcement operations, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said, "We have always believed that dialogue and negotiation are the right way forward, and that military means offer no solution."
Patel said information exchanges are narrow in scope and limited to the four types of transnational crime where intelligence sharing is reciprocal. Patel said these new FBI partners would not replace longtime U.S. allies such as the "Five Eyes" intelligence partnership with Canada, Australia, Britain and New Zealand.
"Five Eyes will always be our most important intelligence relationship. No one is trying to replace that," Patel said. "Unlike military and traditional intelligence agencies, we have a unique lane to drive this dynamic change with law enforcement, which is an apolitical mission."
During his trip to Asia last month, Patel met with Chinese Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong and Vice Minister Xu Datong to deepen what Chinese state media described as "practical cooperation" on a range of criminal activities.
The cooperation between U.S. law enforcement and leading global adversaries is a major break from the past, and reflects Trump's personal approach to diplomacy with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"China and Russia are our enemies, period," said Jeff Crocker, a former FBI supervisory agent who retired in 2024. "They are actively trying to harm our country physically, economically and militarily."
Crocker said there are enormous risks related to giving Chinese officials access to the American intelligence community, diplomatic personnel and U.S. government facilities and contractors. Chinese and Russian agents would use any access to U.S. facilities as an opportunity to infiltrate them, Crocker said.
"So this is great cover for them," Crocker said.
Patel said counterintelligence operations and countermeasures are deployed for any foreign visitor to FBI facilities. Three former FBI employees told Reuters this usually involves electronic and physical surveillance, particularly for people from countries considered the most dangerous U.S. adversaries.
"We know exactly who is coming here, and we vet them," Patel said.
The Kremlin and the Russian Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Patel said there have been months of behind-the-scenes law enforcement collaboration with Russia targeting violent criminal networks.
"This stuff doesn't happen overnight," Patel said. "We've been at this for 15 months."
An internal memo viewed by Reuters credited the FBI's cooperation with China...
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