Transcripts For CSPAN Senate Hearing On Chinas Global Influence 20240712

America. This is just over two hours. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will come to order. Welcome everyone and good morning. Senatorsing to have participating both live and virtually. Since it is difficult to determine when they showed up virtually, we will go on seniority. If that is agreeable, that is what we will do. Three we welcome witnesses. David stillwell, secretary of state for east asia and pacific affairs. The senior pacific official. Assistant to pity secretary for western affairs. Today, of course, we are going to be talking about china. Obviously, china presents us with many challenges. With opportunities also. Right now, challenges. Ofre has been a lot legislation introduced as far as china is concerned. Bill we introduced earlier that tries to bring together as many as possible. I am told as recently as today or yesterday, the minority introduced a bill of which senator schumer is the lead sponsor, i am told. In any event, this is not a partisan issue. This is an american issue. When i put together the bill originally, i brought together processes from all sides. We consulted with a number of people both in the set of the island the other side. There is a lot of input from a lot of bipartisan effort in the bill. We went on to the think tank. Liberal and got those in. Im glad to hear there has been this bill introduced by the minority. Can bring it into one bill. It is not a partisan issue. The deputy secretary testified on the Administration Strategy withdvancing competition china. We will look at three regions. I look important to the assessment of chinas impact in the regions. A lot ofs doing to activities are common knowledge. There are other things that is important to drill down to. To understand about prosperity and Good Governance in the regions. That is an important thing to shed light on for the american people. Us who deal in these kinds of things are aware of chinas activities everywhere. We know virtually everywhere you in the world, china is there. In the strategic act, i talked introduced earlier, i made it clear we must address challenge china as a global challenge. Our priority must be the indo pacific region. The feature of the region future of the region is decisive for the u. S. Both economically and in terms of security. Harvard has been this region means expanding our Economic Engagement, especially southeast asia. It means the portable will to deepening treaty alliances and grow security partnerships. It means ensuring the region is resourced as a proportion of the state apartment budget. Objective is to use regional supremacy in the pacific and then use that to become a leading world power. Eating our policy right in this region impacts our policy and other regions we are examining to in europe, one of my major priorities is to advance a constructive agenda with transatlantic partners. We are already moving in that direction. I have met with numerous leaders from European Countries. Exchanged ideas and i can tell is hitting a welcoming audience. On both sides of the atlantic, we have strengthened investment screening. We are cooperating to uphold the integrity of international institutions. In the u. K. And others. They are engaging deepening their engagement. This is a good investment. I am encourage the u. S. Has agreed to join the new dialogue in china. I look forward to hearing about that and other efforts today. In the western hemisphere, the negative impacts are clear. This includes predatory finance mechanisms for infrastructure projects. Ofjects that are often questionable value and create environmental challenges. Aggressive fishing practices violate integrity. Raising significant longterm security concerns. Blatant efforts to trade in the ares of canadian citizens appalling. I am encouraged by president to collaborate with neighbors to promote a more prosperous future. Finally, this hearing is an opportunity to conduct oversight of the Department Coordination of strategy and initiatives. Importantination is to ensuring our strategy is articulated coherently and executed effectively. Thank you to the witnesses for being here. Im going to turn it over to a senator who shares many of my concerns and hopefully we will be able to Work Together to create an american answer. Thank you, mr. Chairman. And my thanks for convening this hearing. We have a common view entered a more competitive era with china. China displaying global ambitions. Many have concerns the Administration Strategy to deal with this new strategy fall well short of answering the enormity of the challenge. China today, led by the communist party, is unlike any challenge we have faced as a nation before. And as we will have an opportunity to discuss, china is more active and more assertive around the globe than ever before. Unfortunately, the trump agenda has served to empower chinese aggression. Ken u. S. Influence and fail american workers. This moment demands a Strategic Response to invest in our ability to outcompete china and the generation ahead. Is why i have joined with a number of my democratic colleagues to introduce the america leads act. It seeks to do three things. Invest an american competitiveness. An american competitiveness. In american competitiveness. Invest in our values. And invest in economic statecraft and ensure china pays a price for its predatory actions. America leads provides a comprehensive and coherent strategy and approach addressing the new competitive u. S. China relationship. Policies and allocate Critical Resources that combine and mobilize all aspects of u. S. National power. Starting with the recognition american competitiveness starts with investments at home. Workers, education, science and technology and innovation. Driven by the need after almost four years of destruction under President Trump to retool the economy to compete in the 21st century. Broader architecture of our approach is grounded in getting china right by first getting the Indo Pacific Strategy right. Centered on our alliances in partnerships, animated by values exceptional,rica and powered by a tough, pragmatic, and realistic appraisal of how to combat chinas trade policies. Critical and relevant, the legislation includes provisions for the implementation of robust Regional Strategies to meet the china challenge in europe, the western hemisphere, africa, the middle east, the arctic and of course the into pacific itself. Itsefl. Pacific itself. I look forward to working with him in areas of convergence between our bills to forge a strong, unified, and bipartisan approach. More specifically to the hearing today, i am interested in hearing a sense of their perspective on where we stand in their respective regions of responsibility. Europe and the western hemisphere. There is a lively debate between europe and the United States in the right approach to china. As we hear in the u. S. Come to grips developing the right policy, our friends in europe will be among the closest partners. I dont know anyone would argue the president s destructive approach has made our efforts to advance the joint agenda any easier. Imposing tariffs on our allies is not a good recipe for success. Publiclyy and insulting leaders across europe is not a recipe for success. An essential Building Block must have a strong Transatlantic Alliance which today of course does not exist as it has in the past. U. S. Hasong, the sought to pressure europe without providing alternatives. 5g is perhaps the best example where the u. S. Did not adequately emphasize european alternatives while pressuring our allies. That approach is not sustainable. Within we have to make progress. Call for a working group in china. I look forward to learning more about this initiative. The power of the American Economy and european economy provides formidable leverage visavis china. It may be the sole factor that truly moves the needle with beijing. We should be laser focused enhancing that leverage. Hemisphere, chinas presence need not be viewed through the lens of a zerosum game. We should not be surprised that chinas influence expands at our expense. The president s misguided view every challenge needs to be solved with a sledgehammer, whether placing tariffs or cutting off assistance to Central America, has only inflicted damage in the relationships we need to counter the more corrosive elements of chinas engagement in our hemisphere. The Trump Administrations results speak for themselves. At a rate of one per year, panama, the dominican republic, and salvador have broken diplomatic relations with taiwan. Cteenezuela, utilizing the surveillance technology, the expendedgime has control over the people. When our allies in canada rightfully arrested the huawei ceo, for extradition to the u. S. , the Trump Administration responded with little more than press statements as beijing placed tariffs on canadian trade and kidnapped canadian citizens. Americaently, as latin and the caribbean has become the theenter of the pandemic, Trump Administration has over promised and under delivered. By the government well the government committed new lending for Vaccine Access and delivery. And the Development Corporation which congress stood up existed so we could better compete with china. It has yet to make significant investments in our hemisphere. When it comes to addressing chinas presence in our hemisphere, the Trip Administration rhetoric has outpaced actions. Attempts at swagger have outpaced substance. We must course correct. That is why i was proud to introduce the advancing competitiveness and transparency widths senators cardin and kane. It will strengthen diplomatic and security assistance. Our closest partners acquire the tools they need to defend their Natural National interests. Given the shortcomings of strategy, itmps is more and more clear we need a real strategy to cope with the competitive challenge of china. I look forward to a genuine conversation with witnesses about how to develop a comprehensive approach to china. Reinvest and replenish the resources of our National Strength and competitiveness. Allies and partnerships first. Thank you. Learn to our first witness. The assistant secretary of state for east asian and pacific affairs. He served in the air force for their 35 years and retired in 2015. He served multiple tours of duty japan and china. Recently, he served as director of the chinese Strategic Focus group at u. S. Indo Pacific Command in hawaii. We welcome you. The floor is yours. Thank you, chairman risch. Ranking member mendez. Menendez. Opportunity tohe testify to discuss the threat by party. Nese communist im here to tell you today, with several department colleagues, the fact that the three of us are testifying across three different geographic regions is a testament to the challenge we face and how the department is adjusting. For years, committed credited beijings commitments to the domesticbased rules order would lead to reform. To us and more and more countries around the Foreign Policy seeks to shape values around one beneficiary, the communist party. Their conduct is being noticed. Bullying behavior of Foreign Companies and companies governments. Silencing critics abroad, buying, stealing, or forcing tech transfers. Agree just human rights abuses. Theabilizing agree coverup of covid19 highlights the dangers of the prc disinformation. We are engaging with the party as it is and not as we wish it would be. Seeks to present itself rhetorically. Our competition with the peoples republic needed not lead to conflict. We are restoring stability where the world has previously allowed beijing to format instability. Foment instability. There are pillars, protect the american way of life. Promote american prosperity. Preserve peace through strength. We have organized to ensure officers have policy training, messaging direction to tackle the china challenge. This has meant breaking down bureaucratic barriers. We have developed new data driven diplomacy tools. We have asked all of our posts to designate officers to focus on china policy portfolio. They have increased diplomatic reporting. Cadre ofifting our experts identifying Regional Trends in Chinese Communist party behavior. The battle against maligned activities requires messaging that is wellinformed and well executed around the world. Diplomacy teams work with the department of global promote aairs to more positive vision. State economic sphere, lending and investment distorts markets, encourages corruption, and creates an uneven Playing Field. We are in the forefront of raising Global Awareness about this with bipartisan congressional support. Infrastructure, commercial competition, and investment screening trade and technology, we have taken measures to deny the prc the ability to continue its military strategy. Sureincludes making stem students are not able to military u. S. In modernization. We have called on countries to secure 5g networks. More and more companies are doing that securing their 5g networks. Announced anpeo ontiative focused safeguarding information. Including apps and app stores. We are bringing transparency and propaganda outlets. State owned enterprises and more. Since february, we have designated as Foreign Missions nine propaganda outlets and the confucius institute. We capped the number of individuals allowed to work at these outlets. We closed the consulate in houston due to concerns about the inappropriate actions of diplomats. We require diplomats to seek permission. As beijing has longed on to our diplomats. We appreciate congressional leadership establishing the new Counter China influence fund. This very important provision provides the department with a flexible mechanism that will bolster resiliency to chinese maligned influence. The initial round of funding resulted in over 400 project submissions from around the globe. The demand outstripping appropriate funding. There is a lot to go over. The resilience and strength of our global alliances is paramount to addressing strategic competition. In no region is this more true than the indo pacific. Our vision is about supporting me a ton ami and pluralism of the pacific states. We support a region open to trade and investment. The u. S. And a diverse cohort of allies speak clearly in terms of the indo pacific. Similar contests have been put forward by japan and south korea. Showing remarkable alignment across our partners. We have advanced economic initiatives. In years g security. Investment screening and more. We are strengthening commercial diplomacy. Countries settled with unsustainable debt. Wepromote Good Governance, launched the indo pacific transparency act, which has influenceocused on including corruption, disinformation, and coercive financing. We are reinforcing security commitments. We have Double Development assistance through the pacific pledge. We are developing arrangements to coordinate with likeminded partners. Meeting ofinistry the u. S. , australia and japan marked a new era. The taiwan relations act is firm. As is our commitment to the one china policy. Including our assistance cross strait issues be resolved peacefully. A recent visit shows the u. S. Will work with taiwan on vital issues such as Global Health. We will also continue to vigorously support taiwans meaningful support and International Organizations. Secretary pompeo announced a change in maritime claims, making it clear claims to offshore resources are unlawful. As is its campaign of bullying to control them. Last month, the secretary announced visa restrictions for state owned businesses including the China Communications construction company. This was coordinated with department of commerce additions. We are seeing results. Dozens of countries have taken action to restrict vendors from their 5g networks. We have seen stricter investment screening mechanisms. 54 countries came together to deny a candidate to the top leadership position. 23 countries joined us in signing it. More and more countries taking action against the confucius institute. And propaganda outlets. We have released joint statements in hong kong. Many of which have imposed export controls. We are pushing all countries to exposer reciprocity and vectors of influence. Including by diplomats, researchers, and state enterprise employees and others. To have aneds Important Research ship relationship with the prc. We need to hold beijing accountable for its behavior and protect National Security and longterm wellbeing. We are asking the International Community to join us standing up for international rights. We are making Great Strides towards this goal and we appreciate this committee support. Thank you you, secretary stillwell. That was certainly a good tour around theres a lot to unpack. Your statement indicates. We will now turn to philip rieger who has led the bureau of European Affairs since march 2019. Prior, he was posted in journaling germany. He served numerous posts throughout europe including u. S. Ambassador to North Macedonia and counsel general in milan. Good morning. Knowledge, this is the first time that the head of the European Bureau has testified at a hearing on chinese influence. I think this speaks itself to underscore the scope and scale of the challenge we face from the Chinese Communist party. Stillwell has done an excellent job laying out how the department is implementing the strategy on china. I will focus on how we see the challenge in europe, what we are doing about it, and why europe matters so much in an era of renewed strategic competition between major powers. Europe is home to most of americas closest and oldest allies. Its the largest export market for u. S. Goods and services. The United States and europe are each others primary source and destination for foreign direct investment. The United States and the European Union account for over 40 of the worlds gdp. Three point 6 trillion in 2019. Thats more than four times the u. S. Investment in the asianpacific region. Like russia, the Chinese Communist party has realized that the relationship is really the beating heart of the west. Perhaps the biggest obstacle to the prcs designs for the future world order. Chinas global ambitions are simple enough possible if the Transatlantic Alliance remain strong and united in opposing chinese authoritarian overtures. China does not necessarily seek new allies in europe. They prefer battles, not partners. It wants to drive a wedge beneath between the United States and our allies. The starting point of our engagement must be our shared values and basic conceptions about how governments ought to behave towards their citizens and the world. The u. S. And europe sometimes disagree on specific policies or approaches. We generally agree on the fundamental concepts like the rule of law, transparent and accounted government, and basic human rights. The Chinese Communist party does not. We must think of europe not just in terms of what we can do together elsewhere in the world but as a theater of strategic competition in its own right. Allies face maligned influence and pressure in their own countries that we must work with them to counter. Using platforms like the one belt, one road initiative, the chinese commonest party tries to cultivate client state relationships. Through the 17 plus one china aims to achieve access and ownership over valuable transportation hubs, critical infrastructure, and industries. Over the last three years, weve seen an increase awareness in many European Countries. What secretary pompeo has referred to as a transatlantic awakening to the china challenge. U. S. Diplomats have been pounding the pavement, virtually or otherwise, throughout europe. The tide has turned. Are substantial and successful diplomatic engagement contrasts sharply with the backlash we are seeing caused by chinas heavyhanded mass diplomacy during the pandemic throughout europe. European audiences are getting to see firsthand just how ccb handles criticism and questions. They dont like what they see. Our engagement is bearing fruit. Just a touch on a few highlights. Using authorities granted by legislation, members of this committee introduced the bipartisan bill. Weve been able to begin leveraging the new Development Finance corporation to try to catalyze key investments and strategic projects, most notable i point to the pledge at the munich secured a conference earlier this year of 1 billion. A commitment to the three Cs Initiative. , they haveh republic transformed from a target of chinese influence to a leader in the european awakening. Seven countries have signed bilateral memorandum of understanding with the United States on 5g security. The secretary signed the most recent one yesterday with alyssa when you lithuania. 15 european nations have adapted best practices from our own legislation as models to draft their own laws to protect their industries from maligned Foreign Investment. As the foreign secretary discussed in their meeting yesterday, the United Kingdom plans to secure its networks. France and germany both recently unveiled a formal Indo Pacific Strategy to reflect the changing consensus on the threat posed by china. Im told that france, germany, and the u. K. Filed a joint note rejecting chinas sweeping claims over the South China Sea. Too has formally agreed address the opportunities and challenges stemming from the Chinese Communist partys growing influence. The eu has referred to the prc as a systemic rival and sweden recently closed the last of the confucius institutes present in the country. More and more european nations are coming to the same conclusion we have about the nature of the threat to our values, security, and prosperity. They are doing so because they want to, not because we tell them to. Our role has been to share information, exchange experiences, and provide the support and encouragement necessary to empower them to make the right decisions. That europeforget is also the central focus of ongoing russian aggression and maligned influence. Chinas gdp is about eight times the size of russias. Russia remains the primary military threat to europe and the strategic priority for morse of our allies and partners. Russia and china are more closely aligned strategically than at any point since the 1950s. We see growing cooperation across a range of diplomatic, military, economic, and information activities. Russia and china are not a monolithic block. They ours there are certainly tensions in that relationship. There growing strategic convergence is more than a simple marriage of convenience. Its based on a shared assessment of the threat the United States and our allies pose to their ambitions through our strength, prosperity, and values. This dynamic is not going away anytime soon. We must account for it in our diplomacy and policies in this era of great cap power competition in europe. Whether we are talking about competition against the Chinese Communist party or the kremlin or any other rival, our greatest advantage remains our system of alliances, particularly in europe. As the secretary has stated on many occasions, our allies need to shoulder their share of the burden. They are making progress in doing so. The United States has friends. The kremlin and the ccp do not. This is a fundamental and enduring difference between us and them, between the democratic west and the authoritarian powers trying to divide us. The interest to support, empower, and consult our european allies are working. Progress is not always immediate and engaging with our allies on these issues sometimes leads to hard conversation and choices. Having these hard conversations ensures we have an alliance and partnerships that are able to defend the shared Democratic Values and traditions that define the west and underpin the free world. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. I look forward to your questions. Thank you. We will now hear from our third wetness. Part witness. Bringing a wealth of experience from the indo pacific and latin america. She was previously the director for japan and the bureau of east asian and pacific affairs. She helped as the deputy chief at a mission in cambodia and the deputy political counselor in columbia. The floors yours. Floor is yours. Committee,of the thank you for the opportunity to testify about china in the western hemisphere today. This issue is one of our most pressing priorities and one that requires close court nation with our neighbors, allies, and global partners. Strong requires cooperation between the administration and congress. I welcome your engagement and the chance to be with you today. Hemisphere, we are implementing the Administrations National secured he strategy and its vision for free and open into pacific. We have to strategic objectives. Reinforce our position as the regents partner of choice. Counter chinas maligned activities because they threaten the regions prosperity, security, sovereignty, and democracy. Today, secretary pompeo is on his way to countries in our hemisphere to reaffirm these values and partnerships. The United States and western hemisphere enjoy a 1. 9 trillion trading in goods and services. In comparison, china has a 330 billion trade and 120 billion fpi. Havethe past decade, we seen a dramatic increase in chinas engagement in the region. China has sought regional commodities, critical minerals, and export markets. China state owned enterprises are investing heavily in just into strategic categories. Weve seen an increase in questionable chinese loans for infrastructure projects. All of this is concerning because of the way china does business. Chinas corrosive capital and put it toward lending undermine the rule of law and a Good Governance. A region hunt greek hungry for investment fines chinese loans attractive. The Sticker Price on these deals does not reflect the hidden cost. Chinas corrupt practices threaten the regions hardwon , labornd the rule of law rights, and the environment. Issues important to the citizens of the region. Faced with this challenge, an important part of our approaches to share with our partners information about the risks of doing business with china. We also aim to demonstrate that the United States and our allies and american businesses provide better alternatives when quality, transparency, and respect for National Sovereignty are taken into account. Capacitytalyzing building for the Regions Energy and infrastructure needs. Working with u. S. Companies and the interagency to enhance the regions competitiveness and revitalize its economy. Chinese engagement is particularly egregious in information and communication technology. Cte haveompanies like significant market share in the region already. We are working with our partners so they understand the National Security and Human Rights Concerns about chinese vendors, many of which are state owned and controlled by the Chinese Communist party. These concerns speak to the sovereignty and human rights of the citizens in the region. 5g is still in its infancy. We do have an opportunity to ensure our partners understand the risk of opening their data to chinese vendors. They also know that the availability of trusted alternatives. We continue to draw attention to chinas fishing practices that do not adhere to International Norms in our region and around the world. The massive chinese fishing fleet of over 300 ships near the galapagos this summer alarmed governments, the fishing immunity, and environment to list. We are working with our partners to increase cooperation and expand the capacity to detect and deter unregulated fishing. Support for democracy and human rights is critical to our engagement. We continue to support Civil Society, fight corruption, and strengthen oversight of human processes. Open and transparent government makes it harder for china to exploit our partners through bribery or unfair deals. Working with democratic partners from asia, including taiwan, japan, and the republic of korea, is an important tool to raise awareness about china. The hemisphere is home to nine of taiwans 15 diplomatic partners. We maintain vigilance as china pressures these countries to flip recognition to beijing. Maintaining the status quo of taiwans diplomatic relations and highlighting our shared Democratic Values and showcasing taiwans regional engagement and partnerships are top priority. Finally, our public diplomacy. Especially our people to people diplomacy advances the fourth pillar of our strategy. A hemisphere that embraces democracy and views the u. S. As a valued partner in the region. We are working relationship that will reduce the china to spread its influence and reinforced fly our shared values are so important. Programs showcase the innovation of the united face states and the power of the individual to make a difference in their community. Strengthening our relationships with Civil Society, businesses, and especially the youth. This is the time to strengthen academic and professional exchanges more than ever. We remain wellpositioned for generations to come. Thank you for the opportunity to testify and for your support for our efforts. I look forward to your questions. Thank you. Do around ato five minute questions. It will be done on seniority basis due to the fact that members are attending virtually. ,he first question i have anyone can take a shot at this. If you can tell me what the new eu u. S. Dialogue on china that is coming down the pike. Where are we in the planning stages . Easy estimated to be when the first dialogue will occur . Thanks. This out of my spoken remarks. The high representative Vice President of the European Union proposed this dialogue. Shortly after the secretary had joined the Foreign Affairs committee of the eu during the summer. We have spent the last couple months working out the parameters of this through our mission in brussels, through the eu mission in washington, and direct contact. We developed instead of set of pillars that we plan to focus on. ,ecovery from the pandemic focusing on reciprocity steps, and resilience. How do we deal with supply chains and other things . Disinformation is a major topic that everyone has said we need to discuss. Of course, human rights. The europeans have suggested we include a discussion on International Organizations and chinese efforts to dominate those. And just share our experiences in dealing with china. The idea is to have a form where we can really review all aspects of the chinese presence in europe, globally, and how we deal with that. The secretary and plan to kick this off. We are looking for a date in the near future, trying to do scheduling. I think we are resigned to the fact that this may have to be virtual instead of in person, given the pandemic. We will go from there to other levels of engagement. The deputy secretary has also agreed to participate. Hes had a number of conversations with his counterpart at the eu. The political directors of all the eu Member States will gather and have this on their agenda at the end of the month. Presidency. Rman thats an opportunity for the Member States to engage as well with the eu. We have to look at member state experiences as well as overall brussels approach. There are a number of i hope we can kick this off if not at the end of this month, then early next month. Project as a longterm that engages in a formal structure several times a year and at working group levels as well so that we can really exchange ideas, experiences, and strategies Going Forward. Thank you. I dont think anyone would disagree that this will be a long haul project versus instant gratification. Senator menendez . Thank you. Know, we introduced Bipartisan Legislation in the last month to strengthen u. S. Competitiveness in latin america and the caribbean and address chinas Economic Security and intelligence against meant engagement. I believe our efforts are complement three. Department of state required to provide Technical Assistance to regional partners to help them safeguard their infrastructure from predatory Foreign Investment, similar to the committee for Foreign Investment in the United States. Can you tell me what initial steps have been carried out on this front . Thank you for your question. Screening, this is something that is a very important issue throughout the region and world. Thank you for the. We will consider that. We will discuss with our staff for feedback regarding that bill. In terms of investment screening, we have extensive engagement in the region. We have been sending technical delegations to countries to explain how the processes work. We have help governments build out capacity through the initiative. We have 10 mo use signed throughout the region. Thats part of the tools we use in addressing the issues that china is preaching to the region. How do we ensure countries have the right practices in place and Regulatory Framework so that private Sector Companies want to come and invest in those countries . Thank you. It strengthens the dfcs engagement in latin america and authorizes additional eligibility for Caribbean Companies countries canyon countries. How does the administration prioritize engagement in the region . Thank you for the question. Has been a wonderful tool and resource we have been able to utilize now more than ever. Now expanding that on a broader base and a latin america and the caribbean. And haslready invested pledged to invest 12 billion in the western hemisphere alone. In Central America, 3 billion. Its already invested in Central America. In el salvador, and lng project. We are working strategically to ensure that these are strategic, that they have purpose, that they bring the right competitiveness and transparency to the region. It also requires a designation of a china engagement officer at western hemisphere embassies to report on chinas presence in the region. Can you outline the reporting officers you have in the region . Thank you. Officer,e one china china regional officer in the western hemisphere. We just got approval to get three additional positions in the region. We are excited to be placing those positions in panama, guay, and barbados. Every embassy in the western hemisphere has a China Working Group who does regular reporting through our channels. We court made all the messages throughout the western hemisphere in our monthly message. It requires the executive branch to provide regional partners with assistance on cybersecurity and cyber defense. Can you outline any efforts in that regard . On cyber issues, we have two very new initiatives that we took from the indo pacific that we are now launching in the western hemisphere. One is the gcc p. Dccp. That was planned for the eap region. Realizing the important of 5g issues, we launched this for the first time in our region. Of 10 investment million. This will provide cybersecurity training and best shared practices. We can with our partners to make sure they are aware of the cyber issues and have the right tools to address them. Your responses. The initiatives are mutually reinforcing. I look forward to working with the chairman to schedule a markup so we can have congressional support for some of these initiatives. As you know, authoritarian nations such as china and russia are utilizing emerging technologies in new ways to surveilled and repress domestic and foreign populations as well as manipulate democratic elections. These countries are now spreading their models for digital authoritarianism to other countries who may be attracted to these new modes of social control. What the Administration Strategy to counter the spread of digital authoritarianism and the malign use of Digital Products and services and into pacific . In the indo pacific . As my colleague from the western hemisphere noted, the strategy is not limited to eap but it has been throughout, globally. We have been executing this effort to take down things like these are wellknown to us. We have been shining a light on these activities that would otherwise seem benign. They are in fact nefarious. The most recent is identifying apps, seemingly innocuous, tik tok and others. Massivey are, collection platforms for information used by the Chinese Communist party. Zealandy, new discovered that their Prime Minister had been targeted by this. The strategy involves not just focusing on china itself but helping the world defend from these things. You may remember keith kroc and i confirmed together 18 months ago. He has been leading the way on many initiatives. The clean initiatives, youve heard that series already. That brings all of these ideas into one place. Hes uniquely qualified to talk about digital secured he. Im happy to hear from him. I was more focused on digital authoritarianism, the use of technology to try to control people and nations that seem to be following chinas lead and accepting chinas technology. I would love to hear from that for the record. As soon as you can. Thank you. Thank you. I think you hit on a really important issue on the cyber Matters Regarding control of massive groups of people. That isa technology right in the wheelhouse of those authoritarian countries that want to do that. I think thats really important. Thanks for that line of questioning. Im told senator johnson is with us virtually. Is that true . Apparently not. [laughter] the next one on my list is senator gardner. Hey, thank you very much for this. Thank you to the witnesses for testifying today. Weve obviously been working with our colleagues on efforts to shape new policy towards the indo pacific. China is the emerging global power that is challenging the United States in every domain. Now intimidates countries across the globe, leverages economic to coerce large and small countries alike. It seeks submission and domination of chinas made in 2025 policy have leveraged [inaudible] it cultivates economic dependence and threatens sovereignty. Beijings military Modernization Program is the most Rapid Military buildup in history, threatening the security of the most prosperous region of the world. These more important ever to ensure the United States maintains leadership, reaffirms alliances, bolsters economic links between the worlds advanced democracies, and promotes human rights and the rule of law. The administration and Congress Must be united on implementing a longterm strategy that will benefit the american National Security interests, american businesses, and create jobs and project american values. Includes countering chinas influence from the indo pacific to europe to the western hemisphere. Maintaining a Strong Military that deters chinese coercion and expansionism. The u. S. Must pursue a strategy that secures u. S. Technological privacy and Economic Security in the coming decades. My Asia Reassurance Initiative act ensures that the United States government will speak with one voice to reassure our allies that we will continue to lead in the indo pacific region. Increasingly Global Nature of this competition with china. Its more important than ever that we continue to leave lead the free and economic countries of the world. Ask,irst question i would are you incorporates [inaudible] talk about how this administration has implemented this to work with the allies to promote that network deficient of Security Cooperation and counter chinese coercion. How can this strategy better be adopted by our allies throughout the region or other countries that may be hesitant to be caught up in a Great Power Competition . How can we make sure the world is upholding a free and open region . Thank you for that. Its good to see you virtually. Its good to see you. The great part about all of this legislation of the comports quite well and meshes well with the Indo Pacific Strategy. It tells the chinese that congress and the administration on both sides of the aisle are absolutely aligned on a large majority of these efforts. Easier ifthis is much we do it in networks, and groups. I can point out any number of examples in the region. Outside of the region as well. India has come on very strong in this regard. The concept of the indo pacific has incorporated india into the larger solution, getting the word out matters. Ive been encouraged by our colleagues in europe that have understood the threat, have come to act on it. You have seen positive activity out of chechnya. The minister said some very helpful things. A number of the folks in europe have come on strong in this regard. Its only going to continue. Thats because we are doing this as a group effort, not as a as the u. S. By itself. Its the entire government doing it. Legislation like this. All the cooperation between the administration and the congress. Thank you. Thank you. Beijing has been counterproductive and dangerous. The International Community and beijing are realizing that taiwan and china are on different trajectories and incompatible systems of government and values. Building on bipartisan support in the u. S. Congress for taiwan it the taiwanese people, expands taiwans links with the International Community and its presence in global organizations. You talked about that in your opening statement. How important is Something Like a bilateral trade agreement with taiwan . What are the economic benefits . Could we see progress from that on that in the coming weeks ahead . Thats a very important point. [inaudible] keith kroc is in taiwan right now to celebrate the life and legacy of the former president. The relationship with taiwan. Our goal is to get high with the law. That law is the taiwan relations act. Sure that wemake allow taiwan the International Space to deal with its larger neighbor to the west in a way that resolves their differences through dialogue and not through coercion. We mentioned picking off partners in the past. Not through coercion or use of first force. Cooperation on things like arms sales and the rest is in line with all of our agreements and insurers that the issue between the mainland and taiwan is resolved easily. Thanks. How my doing on time . Not so good. [laughter] thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you. We appreciate that. Senator garden is somewhere out there in cyberspace. In my right . Im right here. Thank you very much. I think all of our witnesses. This is a critically important hearing. China presents so many challenges to the United States via human rights issues where they violate the rights of their own citizens. There are many examples that are of great concern to us. They violated their agreement in regards to hong kong, one country to systems. Ive joined with senator rubio and others in a bipartisan effort to make it clear that there will be consequences for that violation of international agreements. They represent direct security threats. What they are doing in the china sea. They are always raising issue as to the security of taiwan. The list goes on and on. I want to use my time to follow up on our own hemisphere. The ranking democrat on the western hemisphere talked about chinas influence in our own hemisphere. I will followup on the points that senator menendez made during his opening statement, during his questioning. The United States should have a strategic advantage over china in our hemisphere. We have historic ties. We have cultural, geographical ties. We have a history. We are the preferred partner. However, we have seen some really Disturbing Trends in recent years. Initiative, wrote 19 latin american and caribbean nations have entered into economic agreements with china. We look at the health front. Result with covid19 vaccines. We look at the community of latin american and caribbean nations. Into ave entered fiveyear cooperative agreement with china. We know that china wants to use its economic power to undermine our Economic System so that they determine the rules of International Engagement rather than economy such as the United States. We have joined in a bipartisan effort. The United States is advancing competitiveness and transparency, security and the america act. Weve all joined together. My question to secretary chongs, what can we do . What are we doing now . Wrecking that ship recognizing that china has made unprecedented inroads in our own prep hemisphere to shore up economic ties. How can you work with congress to make it clear that this is a all u. S. Effort there is effort . Our commitment to have closer ties with the countries in our own hemisphere. Thank you for your question. Era, weve the covid see china deliver mass ppe. Some of it faulty. Some of it had to be returned. Can we trust what china delivers . We provided over 20 billion globally for the covid effort. The hemisphere. 3000 ventilators. Beyond the immediate donations which address the immediate needs, we are looking further down the road. How do we help in the economic recovery effort . When you talk about whole of government effort, the growth of the American Initiative comes in. We want to help these countries because we expect in 2020, a gdp decline of 9 due to ongoing issues. How do we help them recover in a way that is transparent and long lasting and sustainable . We bring a whole of government together. We are forming new relationships through investment agreements, through further discussions on how we develop the trade frameworks within these countries, so we can have longlasting relationship and Economic Growth beyond the immediate needs of the covid pandemic. Make to other suggestions that may help in this area. One is the u. S. Precipitation in the oas. Legislation would strengthen the parliamentary role within the oas to make it clear that this is an organization that we can better utilize to improve americas influence in our own hemisphere. We are members of the osc. Our participation there has made a much stronger relationship between europe and the United States on the basic principles of our nation. I think we can do the same within oas. I dont to get has been used as effectively as we need to. The second point, a response to both, is the caribbean nations. There are many caribbean nations that are relatively small. It doesnt take a lot of attention to make sure that we have their support on the Global Community within the United Nations and in our own hemisphere. We found within oas, we did not get the type of support we wanted from the caribbean states. It doesnt take a lot of to attention. China is giving them that attention and the United States is not. I would urge us to recognize that we can do a lot more with relatively small amount of funds in some of these small island states. Your response . Thank you. We have seen it as a Multilateral Institution that actually works. Revived theged, ability of the members to speak up against the antidemocratic forces in venezuela, cuba, and nicaragua. Another way we are trying to utilize it is to provide space for taiwan. Last year, we had a humanitarian assistance conference for venezuela. We were able to get taiwan ahead of the tech growth to come deliver a remark at the hall of the oas and announced a 500,000 dollars donation to the venezuelan human you military and effort. Thats unprecedented. The have taiwan be there. That made our friends in beijing very unhappy. We are trying to provide that space for taiwan as well as other democratic actors in the region. Another area we provided that is through the Interamerican Development bank. This is where china provides 0. 004 of contributions. Last year, china tried to demand that when it hosted the meeting in chengdu, that the represented it rep is in it if would not be welcome taiwans representative would not be welcome. The region pushed back on chinas attempt to try to create its own rules and regulations in an international body. It was rejected. The meeting was not held in sean do. It was held in ecuador. We can use a Multilateral Organization space to Work Together with our allies to speak up. In terms of the caribbean, secretarial or secretary pompeo is in the caribbean today. Helped that at held successful democratic elections. Our longlasting relationship with the caribbean. I invited all of the caribbean members to a resilience conference to talk about other countries can Work Together with the United States to combat disaster resiliency in the face of hurricanes. We continue to engage the caribbean. In addition to that, the caribbean is home to four countries that have diplomatic relations with taiwan. We continue to reinforce those relationships. Taiwan is closely monitoring and enhancing their relationships. Ith those countries as well beijing is counseling trying to flip those countries. Thank you. We will now move to senator romney who is supposed to be with us virtually also. I am with you virtually. Thank you. I want to begin by expressing my peer she asian appreciation to the members of the panel for the work you are doing. I think its the most important work thats going on in our government. I think the issue of our decade will be how to deal with the emergence of china as a great power. They would hope to become the greatest and only great power. I salute your work. I want to underscore a few things i think we know. We know that chinas gdp will surpass our own by a lot, given the size of their population. We know at this stage, their procurement is pretty close to equal hours military procurement. They will be able to out invest us in terms of procurement. We know that shell politically, they are rising and we are not. They are lining up people to support them, people who have not supported them are now coming into their side. Thats because they see where the power goes. Friends often go where they believe their interest will be best protected. As china becomes stronger, we may find that they are able to collect something which theyve never had before. Friends. I think President Trump was right to confront china and push pack against their trade practices. I think he made a mistake by not doing so in collaboration with our allies and being able to have more clout pushing against them. Secretary pompeo was right to have spoken so forcefully to awaken our allies to the threat posed by china. And to encourage a collaboration with them. I would note that many of us have very great concerns about the human rights abuses going on in china. The outrageous treatment of minorities, people of religious faith, people of hong kong. It is simply extraordinary. We see their activities in the South China Sea with great alarm. Its my own view that its very unlikely that they will change these practices in a very significant way until they feel pain. The only pain that we will be able to exert other than words and people decrying them would be economic pain. The question i would ask with , are ouro our panel allies and other nations that follow the rule of law, india, japan, south korea, the eu, are they poised to combine at some point and develop a collaborative trade policy which will exert such pressure on china that they will be diverted from the course they are on and comported with the International Order . Are we there . If we are not, what do we need to do to get there . Thank you for that great question. It pretty much encapsulates my entire time in this job. A lot of success that weve seen in this regard and getting others to find their voice. Mentioned the europeans they have begun to acknowledge the problem. China uses its economic clout as a cudgel to force countries to do things that are not in its own interest. This in the portray Great Power Competition is the simple act of talking about it. Transparency. The information environment inside the is clogged. Those who speak out like dr. Lee, who pointed out the problems with corona, are oftentimes squelched. Thats because the government fears transparency. They dont want to see be seen whats happening. We identified that. This is a values issue. They are using slave labor to produce things that we appreciate in the west. Those of us in the free world are smart enough to take action, economic action, to address this sort of behavior. You have linkages between economic interest and values and who we are. Secretary pompeo has been very vocal about this is. Connecting those. Is you havef that companies leaving china. When you arrest australian reporters or threatened to arrest them because of something thats happening in australia, you now have zero australian reporters in the prc. Businesses will feel the same thing with this new national secured he law. You say38 says if anything derogatory about the prc, you are subject to arrest. All these things work against that juggernaut that you described of this inevitability of chinese domination in the global economy. At the same time, we are seeing great cooperation on the economic side. 2 billion to restore taiwan. The worlds greatest chip manufacturer is looking to resure into arizona, creating american jobs. I dont think its as inevitable as they would make it sound. I think the u. S. Has been able to generate cooperation with its partners in the East Asia Pacific region and elsewhere as everyone recognizes. Thank you. Thank you. I know my time is up. I want to underscore the importance of combining with these other nations on a collaborative basis to confront china. Thank you. I appreciate it. For those of us that are via the internet, i would appreciate if you would put a clock in front of you for the five minutes. We have heavy attendance. Everybody wants a shot at this. Members,ctive federal i would respective those of you who are not here with a clock in ornt of you, have your staff someone keep track of that. All of us would greatly appreciate that. Welcome. Always in person. Thank you. Thank you to each of our panelists for being here. We really appreciate your insights. As you all have said so eloquently, china represents a threat to the United States both economically and militarily. Economic and governance circumstances in the western balkans really make that region particularly appealing for china. Can you talk about what we are doing . What is our strategy to adjust address china in the western balkans . Thank you. Its always a pleasure for me to discuss the western balkans. I knew that. We have seen some great of elements there. Poses ationed, china threat in that region as well where they seek to divide these small countries from their western orientation. Wewe do with all of europe, have been engaging to make them aware of the threat and challenge. The problems with chinese debt diplomacy. We focus on reciprocity and resilience. For us in the western balkans, as you are aware, we focus on helping all of those countries expand their western orientation. We have seen Great Success there. In northern macedonia, despite the virus this year, the 30th member of nato. Prosperity begins with security. We think expanding the Nato Alliance to include those countries like montenegro as well has been a very positive step. The three Cs Initiative was developed by countries, a dozen countries in the central and eastern region, to provide alternatives in the northsouth direction for trade and infrastructure. We have stepped into support the three cs. Not as a member but as an interested partner. Secretary pompeo outlined that the Development Finance cooperation is offering 1 billion in matching Investment Funds for opportunities throughout the region. We continue to engage with them. You have seen the great strives strides that were made between serbia and kosovo and their longterm problem which has hindered the whole region. Focusing on the economic side. Through the great efforts in the white house and the special president ial envoy, bringing leaders together. Not to tackle the most difficult issues of recognition but focusing on things they can do to normalize economic relations between serbia and kosovo. That has given us new opportunities as well. Im sorry to interrupt. Serbia has actually become a key opened for china and has an Innovation Center with huawei for digital transformation. Do we have a strategy for addressing serbia and other countries interest in partnering with china on huawei and those investments that china might be making in that area . Yes we do. U. K. At the work with the and helping them understand the downside of International Secured he risks. Security risks. Go ahead. The strategy is transparency. These decisions were made in a nontransparent way by incentive is him and bribes with leadership of these countries to make decisions that are not in the interest of their own people. We focused heavily on making these sorts of transactions more transparent. What specifically has been our success in serbia . Have we been able to get the serbs to help us with the transparency piece . I think its a work in progress, senator. I think the more we can build our relationship with serbia and help them understand that we are open to their interest in being more a part of the west, they will come to see the same thing other European Countries are realizing. Who are the partners you can rely on . What our trusted vendors in terms of developing hightech for structure . Infrastructure. The 5g proposals, for instance. They set out parameters for dealing with hightech. The European Union has developed its own security toolbox. Serbia keeps an eye on these things. It is something we need to let them come to that realization. There are options. As we talk about trust and reliance, what kind of challenge doesnt present for our partners in europe when we do things like remove troops from germany without consulting with our partners before making that decision . Does that undermine our reliability with our partners . What does that say about our whenty to get cooperation we are combating china . I spent some time at european command prior to taking over this job. We were already focused on the challenges as outlined in the National Security strategy. Great power competition, including china. The real message that we have sent to partners is evident in the december 2019 nato leaders statement out of london. We declared for the first time that nato should address opportunities and challenges of china, stemming from the pocs growing influence. We have been addressing things like forced posture over time. I will leave that to my Defense Department colleagues to get into the details of that. I think weve got this and we are getting it right. , enhancedrtnerships forward presence. The things we did in response to russian threats, direct existential threats, we need to look at the broader range of threats like cyber and hybrid. China very much a part of that as well. Thats what we are doing collaboratively. Weve actually state strengthened the alliance. Certainly you have seen the progress on burden sharing and resources. Some of the steps we are taking on the forced posture are really positive developments that reflect these kinds of more contemporary concerns that we have. Im out of time. I wont ask you to follow up. Im not sure i got an answer to my question about germany. Thank you. Thank you. Are you with us . No, im told. Senator portman . Apparently not. Senator paul . Senator young . [inaudible] mr. Chairman . Who is that . [laughter] this is senator young. My jumping the gun . We can hear you loud and clear. The floor is yours for five minutes. Chairman. Hank you mr. Building on my colleagues questions earlier, the administration has repeatedly warned latin america and caribbean countries that chinas Economic Engagement with the region may foster corruption and lead to unsustainable debt traps , as we have seen in other areas around the world. Officials,vernment private sector leaders, and Civil Society groups in the region responded to those accusations . Thank you for your question. As you have seen, china uses debt diplomacy and poorer quality infrastructure. We see their investment hurting the environment, violating local labor laws. Weve brought these issues to light with the region, raised it with our government counterparts. Also getting voices out from local partners, local ngos, local journalists, youth groups. Thats where we see the power. When we have the region speaking up for themselves about some of the concerns that china brings to the region. One example is in ecuador. The cocacola st. Clair dam. The chinese funded that. That has 7000 cracks and its growing every day. It has killed workers. It has displaced people. It has put villages out of jobs. Because of its corrupt nature, it has put people in jail. People in the region have seen the dangers of what Chinese Investments can bring. Low prices, great terms. But the longterm hidden cost is what people are understanding. I think countries and governments are more aware of these dangers more than ever. Taking a more cautious approach. Doing more due diligence. Its the governments that will decide whether or not to take such deals. The more that we have Civil Society and others speak out, and see the ramifications of what Chinese Investment means beyond economics, to the environment, to labor laws, to society overall, i think that that understanding and knowledge is growing. That seems to be the key, whether its a bilateral negotiation in diplomatic relations or when we work and othere imf Multilateral Institutions. To the extent we can bring transparency to a lot of these decisions made by governments that often time leads to positive results. How is the Administration Using efc, the Development Finance corporation, and other forms of foreign assistance and incentives to strengthen u. S. Partnerships and counter chinese influence in the region . Thank you for the question. Its a powerful tool that we have. Thinking more strategically about engagement in our region and working with our partners. Two days ago, they announced they would work in partnership with taiwan to provide funding, financing for the covid recovery. This was just announced. Im sorry. Region. N the i was vague. In latin america, the caribbean countries. Instruments of, diplomatic and develop mental power being brought to bear in that region . If so, how . Yes. Thats the importance. Taiwan and the United States are working together on latin america. They announced financing to provide loan support for latin america through the Central American bank of economic integration. Thats one example of where we are providing that funding into the region. There is a 26 million loan that was provided for Telecom Towers in peru and ecuador. This addresses our strategic interest as well as the 5g telecommunications interest that china is trying to take over and really control that sector. Then working with the countries in the region to be able to assess and do the due diligence. Demonstrates your region,nt how this the caribbean and latin america is really instrumental in countering china. The diplomaticf partners located in the caribbean basin region and im grateful for your efforts and those of your entire team to ensure that taiwan has the wherewithal to counter chinese nefarious activities. Thank you very much. Mr. Chairman, i yield back. Thank you senator. Senator koontz is with us live. Senator koontz thank you to our witnesses. China is the greatest Foreign Policy challenge the United States faces today and how we engage with china will shape this century, our place in the world, and our role. There is bipartisan recognition, we are better equipped to compete with china if we work closely with our allies who share not just our interests, but our values. I want to commend senator menendez, senator rubio, and others ive been trying senator young . Senator young, you are still with us. Senator koontz i will keep recognize i want to recognize those integral to our countrys culture, economy, role in the world and chinas efforts to undermine or replace our relationships in this region , as well as in the indo pacific are concerning, even alarming. There are positives. We talked about the dfc. One of my real concerns are ways in which the Trump Administration has enabled chinas influence by abruptly withdrawing troops or withdrawing from International Organizations. Let me ask questions about clarity around those points. That, thet a point on Administration Reportedly weighed withdrawing troops from south korea, a move that garnered bipartisan concern on this committee and on the hill. Can you assure us the administration is no longer considering a withdrawal of troops from south korea . And if any changes would made, it would not happen without close consultation without our allies, partners, as well as with congress. Thank you, senator. Of course these issues all require cooperation. Agreed. But there is no discussion of that in the state department. I respect and recognize the administration is being forward leaning in engagement with taiwan. We are in a moment of great regional challenge and i was wondering whether, as some commentators have suggested, there is some consideration of ending strategic ambiguity and clarifying our commitment to taiwan . And if there were to be a public change in that position there would be consultation before that decision was taken . Senator, that is a very good question. It has been one that has been publicly discussed. I give a speech at the Heritage Foundation on clarifying the six assurances. The rationale behind that is to prevent and reverse p. R. C. s squeezing of taiwans International Space and get back into a position that looks like something we agreed to with the taiwan relations act and that clarification is important. This was not an indication of a change in strategy or policy. It was simply reversing what we have seen as far as ticking off taiwan partners as far as keeping taiwan from attending the world health assembly. The one place that figured out corona first and understood it best and where the people that could have helped out if they were allowed to participate. And any other multilateral activities taiwan is allowed to participate in meaningfully. We are working hard to clarify that. Thank you. If i might, you mentioned the dfc being on track to deploy 12 billion in financing to Central America and the caribbean. Tell me how state and usaid are coordinating. Opec was long a piece of development strategy. Dfc has a broader range of tools and resources and reach. If we were to use the dfc to advance our values and sims of transparency and high labor standards and environmental standards, there has to be internally coordination with the usaid. How do you see that proceeding . Do you see any role for the dfc and our presence in the region to directly to combat digital authoritarianism and strengthen Civil Society, as is urged in the Bipartisan Legislation referenced earlier by the Ranking Member . Thank you for the question, senator. Weterms of usaid and state, are in lockstep on our china strategy. Through an interagency effort, but also through usaid choice of framework, that looks at governance, that makes sure procurement and Civil Society are all involved in the transparency effort and to bring those issues to light whenz we hear about opec deals from trustbn when we hear about opec deals from china for any other country. We are making sure we are closely aligned and the programs we do on anticorruption and Civil Society strengthening go to build that space so that chinas malign influence does not overtake that space. We are closely aligned with usaid read one example is in the Illegal Fishing area. Usaid is working International Resource strengthening program on National Resource strengthening program. Terms of working on digital authoritarianism, there is no better example in the region workinguros regime and in close concert with china and chinas cte long had a relationship with the maduro regime and providing them capacity which spies on Civil Society and opposition leaders and determines who gets what food allocation in that country. Engaging, we are not in dfc in venezuela, but in the future when we have a democratic transition in the country, we would love to bring dfc in and help rebuild. Thank you. Thank you senator. Senator cruz. Senator cruz thank you, welcome to each of you. , a few months ago deputy secretary begin testified before this committee and we talked about reviewing the Obama Administrations 2015 guidelines for diplomatic relations with taiwan. Which prohibit our taiwanese partners from displaying their flags and insignia. As you know, i filed legislation to change those guidelines, but as ive emphasized, the state department does not need that legislation to pass to change the guidelines. The administration could make those changes right now. The deputy secretary said he was not familiar with the issue when he testified before this committee. As you know in written followup , he stated that changing the guidelines would be in tension with the taiwan relations act. That is a curious statutory interpretation. Position for the state department to take. As far as i can see, there is nothing in the tra that requires these guidelines. Rather, it is a policy decision to be made by the administration. What in your judgment in the tra justifies preventing our taiwanese allies from displaying their sovereign symbols . Senator, thank you. We have been discussing this concept of strategic ambiguity with regard to taiwan and i mentioned earlier, this beach we gave it heritage that helps to clarify those things that need clarification, as you suggest right now with this particular issue, one of the issues that speaks to this is the decision to leave the question of sovereignty undecided ambiguous. We will not take a position on sovereignty. This is part of the backandforth between the mainland and taiwan. With the taiwan relations act and with the Administration Policy wants is for this to be resolved peacefully and through dialogue, not with coercion or use of force. The question of sovereignty was decided to be left undecided and to be worked out. Senator cruz are you testifying that the taiwan relations act mandates the 2015 guidelines . The guidelines follow from the taiwan relations act. Tothey did not exist prior 2015 and the reason they were enacted was because in 2015, the taiwanese raised their flag and the Chinese Government got mad and the Obama State Department decided to kiss up to china and change the rules and appease them. Prior to 2015, there were no guidelines. Prior to 2015, taiwanese military officials were allowed to wear military insignia. That did not magicallys change, did it . So, the broad sweep of the taiwan relations act did not change. It is the same. Was it in violation of that statute when taiwanese military officials were wearing military insignia prior to the 2015 guidelines . Senator, i will simply say that on the question of sovereignty entities are all related and these are all related, that leaving that ision between those two the interpretation is leave that decision undecided. But let me just this administration has gone very far in reversing all of those decisions that have been made in the past to clarify, to support. You saw the secretary of hhs attended. You have an undersecretary in the state department in taiwan right now. I believe what we are doing is definitely in alignment with your interests as well to support taiwan and make sure that they have the ability to resist coercion by the chinese. So i dont disagree that policy has improved under this administration. It is not surprising to me that these guidelines were issued under the Obama Administration and under the leadership of secretary of state john kerry. Their policy position was far far mored entailed appeasement to the Chinese Communists than the Trump Administration has. These policy guidelines are utterly inappropriate in my view for a Trump Administration or for a department of state led by mike pompeo. They are not consistent with the stated policy positions of the principles. It is a matter of discretion. Your argument that the statute mandates that is not the good faith argument. State towould urge revisit this issue. You have the ability to change these guidelines right now. It was the Obama Administration that made them up and it did so at the behest of the Chinese Communists and if you can make them up to make the Chinese Communists happy, you can repeal them to make the Chinese Communists unhappy. I get that the Chinese Communists would be unhappy. Chung, there is broad concern over chinas predatory investments in latin america, alongside separate, but related concerns about how china dominates important industries, including the critical mineral supply chain. Ive introduced legislation that would on shore the supply chain for such minerals. Is minimal. In latin america and beyond, china has sought to dominate the Global Supply of lithium. The control hath of the Global Production of lithium. Argentina, chile, and the lithium bolivia have 70 of the worlds lithium reserves and china has been pouring resources into the region. Helpsteps are we taking to these countries protect their Natural Resources and ensure that they dont fall victim to chinese predatory practices . Thank you for the question. As you state, the lithium triangle in south america is a where theyea maintain imports to that area. We are talking to various governments about that. Investment screening measures before signing deals with any other country. We arere steps that having active discussions with. We have a critical working group. Both of us are keenly aware of sensitivities of supply chain and working more with the industry themselves. We are building up these discussions, but this is of critical interest to us. Thank you. Senator murphy. Thank you very much, mr. Chairman. Thank you to all three for your service. Overestimate the value of the gift we have handed china through this administrations mismanagement of americas covid19 outbreak. First, it bolsters chinas argument that autocratic or semiautocratic forms of government compete with a set of population tools are more effective at meeting modern threats then democracy. When a democracy cant get this epidemic under control after half a year when an autocracy can get it under control in a matter of months, they believe that strengthens their argument. Second, our failure has given start ins massive head the contest for Global Economic influence. Chinas gdp contracted by 6 in the First Quarter and expanded by 3 in the second quarter. In theontracted by 3 First Quarter and 34 in the first second quarter. It is not just that autocratic governments were able to get this under control. They had a 2 contraction in the second quarter. It is not that democracies are unable to get covered under control, but our failure to do so is the worlds most notable and leading democracy, it strengthens chinas argument that countries should follow their model and has handcuffed our economy. Our Business Leaders cant even travel around the world because america is the sick child today. While china now steps into that vacuum. Byhave compounded that error withdrawing from the who. , thosen america countries are relying on china, not the United States in order to help them deal with covid19. China made a 2 billion commitment. News just earlier this month that state department detailees will be removed from who regional and field offices all over the world. One of chinas preeminent defense planners at a conference in 2018 hailed trumps America First strategy say and as the u. S. Retreats globally, china shows up. This for theon is panel and i would love your thoughts you make contest the howise of my question has the United Statess failure to control covid has strengthened chinas hand and how has our withdrawal from the who allowed for china to gain prominence on issues of Global Health . Senator, that is a fantastic question. I appreciate the chance to layout some of the thought process that went behind this. I think in large part there are a couple key failures here. One is the failure of china to control what started off as a simple Public Health problem. When they did control it in the town of wuhan, where we have a consulate, they did it by very inhumane and heavyhanded tactics. They welded people into their homes. They rounded them up if they were sick and pretty much isolated them against their will. They separated parents from specialneeds children and those children died from exposure because they were left. So that is a model, it is certainly a model for dealing with this that i dont think any american would tolerate. Secondly, we are the Third Largest country in the world. We had 22,000 people coming from china for at least three weeks after the chinese knew this was a problem. And we were the first to close our borders to china and then to others on the 31st of january 2 deal with this. Third, if you look at the numbers originally, we did not put our numbers out per capita. When you compared our numbers to belgium and germany and others, per capita we are better. , we are not an island. Who have done so well are able to cut themselves off, but they also cut themselves off from commerce, travel, tourism, and all the rest, and those countries now when the pacific are having a very hard time economically as the disease eventually will make its way into their countries. Whole problemhis begin with the chinese failure to deal with its World Health Organization requirements through the initial requirements to report these things. Secondly, their intrusion into the u. N. And the who had the who leadership telling the world that is ok. I can give you documentation as late as february that they were saying, dont overreact to this. U. S. Contributes 400 million to 500 million a year to who. I appreciate your answer and the fact that youve got to hold the line here of the administration, but the failure to acknowledge that we have done grave damage to americas reputation in the world by not being able to control this virus in a way that plenty of other democracies were able to i think it speaks to a real blind spot and lets just remember it was the president of the United States who was the greatest cheerleader for chinas response to covid in january, february, march, and april. No one was standing up more vocally for chinas transparent and effective response. That made it hard for a lot of people to get tough on china when the leader of the free world was not. I hope we can have a little bit more of a nuanced discussion about our effects of the failure of covid. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you. Center, are you with us . Senator, are you with us . We will go to senator kaine. His senator kaine with us . Senator merkley, you are up. [indiscernible] oh, there you are, senator portman. Thank you very much. Senator portman, i guess you are here on seniority. I guess we will go to senator portman, then to you, senator merkley. Senator portman, you are up. Thank you. Can you hear me ok . I can hear you now. First of all, i appreciate you having the hearing. Ive enjoyed listening to our witnesses and hearing your and senator menendezs opening comments. I have a question for each of the witnesses just quickly if we could to start. We have so many challenges with china and we havent even gotten into some of the trade challenges we have had. But competitiveness and we talked about the human rights challenges, we talked about the challenge to our technology and innovation. Each of the witnesses very quickly, how would you describe our relationship with china and specifically would you consider china to be an adversary, a global competitor, an enemy how would you describe china today in relation to its relationship to the United States . Mr. Stillwell, why dont you start . I can answer credit quickly. Policyal is china is china is a strategic competitor. Skin internal discussions, they have been referring to china as an enemy. Daily, onee peoples of the commonest Party Members noted thatshamedly they had defected to the enemy. If you look at approaches and attitudes toward each other, the approach of the Trump Administration was long overdue. We are not using the word enemy. We are simply competing. In simply competing, we are having great effect in normalizing chinese behavior in the United States. It is adverse behavior in the United States and elsewhere in the world. The support is growing considerably as people recognize that the economic threats, you dont have to bow to those, you can stand up sovereignly. [indiscernible] i would echo the term strategic competitor as we describe it certainly in the National Security strategy, but to point out that in europe we see this as the prc trying to establish their own strategic foothold and indeed promote an authoritarian model of governance and statecontrolled economy and challenge u. S. National security by weakening our political and economic and military ties. Indeed, over the last 12 years, the prc gained increasing influence over european markets and supply chains, something the europeans particularly since covid have been focusing on in terms of resilience and working with us on that the 2008 financial crisis really exposed that, where the prc came in and targeted investment strategies, strategic industries, and critical infrastructure, including courts and other things. Put into natos doctrine Going Forward to look at the challenges and opportunities of the prc as a strategic competitor and you have seen the europeans adopt investment screening mechanisms at the national level. The eu itself adopting for instance a cyber sanctions. Designationir first under the cyber sanction regulations. Thanks for that. Let me get to another question. I appreciate the hard work that you are doing and i think people have begun to wake up to the challenge. Up finallyd to wake catching up, there does need to be information to prevent better how they can screen investments. You know, some of the challenges we face we talked about this morning, the answer is lets require china to do certain things. To provide some additional leveling of the Playing Field and i dont disagree with that and i mentioned trade earlier, an area where they have done things either by subsidizing or selling below cost, they were just wrong and violated International Norms, but it seems to me a lot of are more productive approach to china would be getting our own house in order. Theetitiveness would be most obvious example with that. Including the bipartisan leadership. How do you safeguard American Intellectual property, american taxpayer paid research . We have the safeguarding American Innovation act that comes out of a yearlong investigation and we were able to expose that china has been systematically targeting american researchers, usually again taxpayer paid research and systematically taking that Research Back to china. Since we came out with a report and we had a shocking hearing on this topic about what has happened the fbi, department of justice, u. S. Attorneys have stepped up and they have made public arrests of chinese , who have taken u. S. Paid research and taken it to china to help the chinese economy and chinese military. That legislation we are trying to get passed on the floor now. It is not only the result, it has also been reported and i will tell you that we are now told that the fbi is opening a new china related investigation 20 5000 hours with about open counterintelligence investigations. That is public information. We know more in classified settings we can talk about today, but our Research Organization has been going out the door particularly to china. Other countries, as well. Is we have things to do internally to tighten up. This is not about telling china what they have to do. It is about telling our universities and Research Institutions they have to tighten up. It is tightening up our visa requirements. We need a way to help the state department be able to screen. I wonder if you have comments about safeguarding the American Innovation act and the need to get our own house in order to be able to protect taxpayer paid research and be therefore more competitive in an increasingly difficult climate with china. Brieflyor, i will say in the closure of the houston consulate, this is the tip of the iceberg of the things were doing that align nicely with what you are saying. Thank you. Senator portman, we are really short on time here. If you have some additional i just wanted for the record, mr. Chairman that would be the way to do it, send the questions for the record. I have no doubt the witnesses will respond promptly and appropriately. For the information of the committee, weve got a couple questions andask time is up on the vote. We have two votes. I will try to stall the floor as long as i can until they send somebody up to arrest us. In the meantime, senator merkley thank you, mr. Chairman. I will ask our team to be as brief as you can, so that we can get to the other senators who have not been able to ask questions. Has been ag, there lot of questions of strategic ambiguity in regard to taiwan. An article by the president of the council of Foreign Relations said it is time to put an end to strategic ambiguity, that it has run its course. This is in the context of whether we would defend taiwan if it was attacked. Others have said, that would be a big mistake, you might encourage and attack, but we should have a much stronger, clearer, well coordinated vision with the rest of the developed world in terms of the economic sanctions that would occur, perhaps including closing our countrys two chinese products, which would be devastating to china if they were to attack. Others have said, lets just keep encouraging their participation in international organization, that is enough. Where are you on the spectrum . Thank you for the question. Our relationship with taiwan and the western hemisphere has been unprecedented in the last two years. Dont give me the whole history because we are short on time. Im asking about strategic ambiguity. We are clear on partnering with taiwan. We have had nine of the countries recognized, but seven additional countries in the region have trade offices. We want to enhance our relationship and build a positive partnership with taiwan. We are doing more bilaterally, or joint financing, and more partnerships to build out what we can do together with taiwan, so much more forthright in public about our partnerships in the western hemisphere. That you share the concern the growing military capacity of china and the growing kind of adventurism of president xi make this an important topic for us to keep thinking about . I think generally globally that is true. The western hemisphere, we are looking at all action china is doing in the region. Thank you very much. China is financing a quarter of the coal projects around the region. Including countries like turkey to bosnia and are we working provide financing for cleaner Energy Strategies as we see the impacts of what is happening here in the United States with the hurricane intensity and the fire intensity . Senator, i mentioned earlier the three Cs Initiative, which includes some of the countries you mentioned. A lot of what the initiative is designed to develop are new, modern infrastructures, including energy infrastructure. The dfc, secretary pompeo announced, has put forward up to 1 billion is this es that we are trying to discourage the chinese sale of coal plants around the world . We are certainly trying to give these countries options for not taking chinese debt diplomacy and other engagements. Thank you. Assistant secretary stillwell, administration has not renewed j visas fors j1 International Journalists who shine a light on dangerous chineseincluding journalists who may be sent back in should we Work Together to renew those visas for folks working in partnership with us who may be at risk if exported back in . Deported. That is obviously a complicated question. I will note the p. R. C. s using of its media which is a state organization and claiming that they are journalists and dangerous everybody, and all chinese folks who are trying to do good journalism. The administration has taken steps to rectify that by addressing the issue on i visas. Why is it complicated . These folks are working for us, us, are being employed by they are helping shine a light on home countries in off and is favorable ways. It puts them at enormous risk if it has been returned home. It has been standard to renew their visas if they are working for us. Why is it complicated . Why wouldnt we protect them after they have worked in partnership with us . Im going to have to get back to you on that one. I look forward to that. I dont think it has gotten attention and places people at grave risk. There is a. Reeker, lot of pressure china is putting on countries using economic ofut not to be critical their enslavement of one million uighurs. That pressure includes pressure on the organization of islamic cooperation. Those countries were quite vocal about the ruling got in burma. But they have been cowed about commenting on of the billion muslims enslaved in china. Are we working with the oic to give them the strength to speak up on human rights, including the abuses in china . Text for highlighting that. Thanks for highlighting that. We work with our european partners. As of yesterday when the foreign secretary was here from britain, we highlighted very much in the conversation with secretary pompeo the horrors of the repression. Are the europeans really joining us in this effort . We are seeing a lot of outspoken statements, including from our british partners yesterday. Including the Human Rights Violations in hong kong, speaking up for them. We do see that in a number of it would be good if the islamic world spoke up. Disney make a mistake by working in close cooperation with the Regional Government in china that is enslaving the uighurs . Im not familiar with disney in the capacity. The filming of the film mulan. Im not familiar im told there is no one else on the line. Senator, did you want the floor for half a second . Briefly, i have a series of other questions which im going to submit for the record. On chinas fishing off ecuador and what that means in a World Heritage site i would appreciate substantive responses. Thank you. For the information of all members, the record will remain open until the close of business friday. We ask witnesses to respond as quickly as possible. Your responses will be made part of the record. Thank you to the three witnesses. You have been very patient with us and we look forward to your responses. Thank you for that and the committee is adjourned. [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2020] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] journals washington every day we take your calls live on the news of the day and we will discuss policy issues that impact you. This morning, the founder of Republican Voters against trump Discusses Campaign 2020. Then we will talk about an article examining joe bidens relationship with the progressive wing of the democratic party. Watch live at 7 00 eastern this morning and join the discussion with your phone calls, facebook comments, texts, and tweets. In honor of constitution day, George Washington University Law school hosted a conversation with u. S. Supreme Court Justice stephen breyer. He discusses the role of the supremetion in todays court. This is 50 minutes. Hello and thank you for joining us today. Im delighted to welme