March 1, 2023
4 mins read

‘Tackling China defines next century’

A bipartisan chorus of lawmakers on a newly created special House committee issues warning during an inaugural, primetime hearing…reports Asian Lite News

The Congress must act urgently to counter the economic and national security threats posed by the Chinese government, a bipartisan chorus of lawmakers on a newly created special House committee has warned.

The two superpowers were locked in an “existential struggle over what life will look like in the 21st century”, the committee’s Republican chairman, Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, said as the rivalry between the US and China deepens.

With democracy advocates and protesters in attendance, the panel — formally the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party — began its work at a precarious moment for Washington-Beijing relations, reports the Guardian.

It comes weeks after a suspected Chinese spy balloon traversed the continental US and amid intelligence that Beijing is considering providing lethal weapons to aid Russia in its ongoing war against Ukraine.

Meanwhile, China’s militarisation and aggression toward Taiwan, a self-ruled island that Beijing claims as its own, as well as its response to the coronavirus pandemic, have further escalated tensions.

Underscoring the broad range of challenges the panel hopes to address, lawmakers peppered the witnesses with questions on human rights abuses, trade policies, the influence of TikTok, aggression in Taiwan, the origins of Covid-19 and international espionage, The Guardian reported.

Gallagher hopes the committee will help shape China policy and legislation that can win support from both parties.

US CHINA FLAGS

But with the 2024 presidential campaign looming, and Republicans eager to paint Joe Biden as “weak on China”, the possibility of bipartisan action is likely to become increasingly narrow, reports the Guardian.

“Time is not on our side,” he said, imploring a bitterly divided Congress to come together to confront China. “Our policy over the next 10 years will set the stage for the next hundred.”.

Illinois Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, the ranking Indian-American Democrat on the panel, echoed Gallagher’s sense of urgency.

He said Democrats and Republicans had for years “underestimated” the Chinese government, believing that economic integration would “inevitably lead to democracy”.

But it did not and now the US needed to move quickly to pursue economic and trade policies that would “up our game” as Americans to compete with China, the Guardian reported.

“We do not want a war within the PRC,” he said, referring to the People’s Republic of China, “not a cold war, not a hot war. We don’t want a clash of civilizations”.

The panel met in the same chandeliered room where the House select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol held its hearings. In the audience were Hong Kong pro-democracy activists as well as anti-war protesters who interrupted the proceedings, with one yelling “this committee is about saber-rattling, it’s not about peace” as he was removed from the hearing room.

Several members remarked on the interference, noting that the right to protest was a hallmark of American democracy and a freedom not afforded to those in China.

Highlighting human rights concerns will be a major focus of the panel. On Tuesday, the panel heard compelling testimony from Tong Yi, a human rights activist who was the former secretary to one of China’s leading dissidents, Wei Jingsheng. Yi told how she was arrested and detained by the CCP in the 1990s. After spending nine months in a detention center she was charged with “disturbing social order” and sentenced to two-and-a-half years in a labor camp.

“In the US, we need to face the fact that we have helped feed the baby dragon of the CCP until it has grown into what it now is,” she said.

The committee also heard from Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, who argued that the US dependency on China has had a crushing impact on American workers and wages. “While conflict with China isn’t inevitable, fierce economic competition is,” he said.

On Capitol Hill, a bipartisan consensus has emerged around measures banning TikTok, the Chinese-owned social media app, bills barring Chinese citizens and companies from purchasing land near sensitive military sites, and efforts to limit US exports and technology trade to China. But there are also sharp divisions.

Republicans continue to assail Biden over his response to the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon, which was downed by the US military after it sailed across North America.

​Asked during the hearing what message China hoped to send with the balloon, McMaster said he believed it was likely a “metaphor for the massive effort at espionage” Beijing is carrying out around the world. China has denied the airship was used for spying, ​​claiming that it was a civilian aircraft blown off course​.

ALSO READ: UAE sees 32% growth in green, sustainable finance

Previous Story

Abu Dhabi Cops thwart bid to smuggle 4.5m Captagon pills

Next Story

Nikki Haley: A strong America won’t be world’s ATM

Latest from -Top News

India Eyes Global No. 3 Spot, Says Modi

The Prime Minister stated that people of India have resolved to make India a Developed Nation by 2047, when “we celebrate 100 years of Independence”….reports Asian Lite News Prime Minister Narendra Modi

The UK’s Net Zero Journey

Achieving net zero is not just a technological but also a political and cultural undertaking, writes Hasil Farooque In 2019, the United Kingdom officially committed itself to eradicate all greenhouse gas emissions

Bangladesh’s Dark Side Unveiled in Geneva

Organised by diaspora activists, the exhibit exposed rising rights abuses in Bangladesh post-Hasina…reports Asian Lite News In a bid to spotlight the deteriorating human rights situation and rising persecution of minorities in

India Outpaces Peers in Morgan Stanley Outlook

Global investment firm reaffirms India’s status as top-performing economy in latest growth outlook…reports Asian Lite News India is set to retain its position as the fastest-growing economy among nations tracked by Morgan
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Over 100 world leaders set tone for net-zero emissions

One of the most awaited announcements was India’s suite of

Biden demands release of last US hostage in Afghanistan

Biden said that the hostage-taking is an act of particular