US Congress Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Counter China’s Challenge

Source: AP

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The U.S. Congress has introduced a bipartisan bill to support the Biden administration's strategy of "checking China." The bill defines China as a "competitor" challenging the U.S. economically, diplomatically, and in terms of security, and emphasizes the role of allies including South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Australia, and Thailand in responding to this challenge.

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee is reportedly pushing forward the drafting of the China containment bill named the "Strategic Competition Act of 2021," according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) and others on the 8th (local time).

◆"Pressuring China Using Economic and Diplomatic Means"=The draft of this bipartisan legislation reflects the shared tough stance on China by both the Democratic and Republican parties and aims to support the Biden administration's China containment efforts. The bill is scheduled to be discussed at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the 14th.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez stated, "We are announcing an unprecedented bipartisan effort to confront the challenges China poses to the U.S. national economy and security," adding, "(To this end) we will mobilize all economic and diplomatic means." He further expressed confidence that the bill will secure overwhelming support in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee next week and subsequently in the full Senate.

The bill includes economic and security provisions such as imposing sanctions in response to human rights abuses against the Uyghur population in Xinjiang, supporting Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, promoting humanitarian and democratic values, blocking China's attempts at technology theft, and monitoring China's acquisition of hypersonic, ballistic, and cruise missiles.

Specifically, the bill includes diplomatic and military support worth $655 million (approximately 730 billion KRW) to the Indo-Pacific region by 2026, and $450 million to support maritime security activities. It also contains provisions that recognize Taiwan, which China considers its territory, as a key element in the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy and calls for strengthening partnerships accordingly.

South Korea is cited as one of the key allies in the Indo-Pacific region, and the bill states that the U.S. policy is to maintain maximum economic pressure on the North Korean regime until it takes complete, verifiable, and irreversible steps toward denuclearization.

As a means to this end, the bill proposes pressuring all countries, including China, to enforce UN sanctions on North Korea. It also allocates $10 million to support democracy in Hong Kong and requires reports on situations where the Chinese government uses Hong Kong's status to circumvent U.S. laws.

◆"Restricting Support to Belt and Road Participants"=Additionally, the bill views China's Belt and Road Initiative as a military-strategic intent and includes provisions to restrict support to countries participating in the Belt and Road. It also enforces the July 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) that the Philippines has sovereignty over disputed areas in the South China Sea, which China infringes upon.

The bill also expands the review scope of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to block mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of advanced technology companies by foreign entities, aiming to prevent China's technology theft. The U.S. plans to strengthen CFIUS reviews by increasing the number of critical technology sectors requiring reporting from the current 27 to more.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.