Should set the MSS loose on this guy and prop up a new proxy. I've been a proponent of using MSS just like US uses CIA and NED for a long time. Superpower needs to play these games in the third world to avoid paying the costs by themselves. Best outcome would be a China affiliated guy in the office and things go as planned. Worst case outcome, China cuts her losses after trying her hand atthe color revolution game and turns the country upside down, tough luck to anyone eyeing the mines when the country is embroiled in a civil war between China allied faction and West allied faction, who cares lmao. MSS gets real world experience in organising colour revolution and conducting live operations on foreign soil either way which is another positive. Gotta start sharpening our blades now if war is to come. Enough with the shared future for humanity bs. Welcome to Great power competition.
Most of the time it can be a problem because the new guy is usually a great bozo that immediately betrays you anyways, because you've rightfully earned the people's hatred and most dictators are also populists.
What China seems to be doing is the global equivalent of surrounding the cities from the countryside. Instead of meeting US country for country, they're focusing on shoring up the existing international system from every single direction at once. In some points, there are setbacks and resistance, but China is helping to stabilise and prepare almost every country that isn't blatantly US client states, and even on client states, China is ready to offer bargains for switching sides.
This means that even if some fronts are not moving now, US can only respond to so many fronts at a time, and they don't have the economical size or industrial depth that China has which would allow them to respond to everything at once.
There are some places where China needs to seriously consider a strategy of direct action, but some random third world country is absolutely not that. The third world countries that are still free need to be mostly stable so they can help fuel the global economy. However, on third world countries with dubious leanings, a strategy of encouraging breakup might be good.
