Washington’s new congressional committee on China held its first hearing on Tuesday, with members identifying next year’s elections in Taiwan and the US as a potentially unstable period in the Taiwan Strait.
The US House of Representatives Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the US and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was formed on Jan. 10, shortly after the Republican Party took control of the chamber.
US Representative Mike Gallagher chairs the committee of 13 Republicans and 11 Democrats.
Photo: AFP
Four witnesses were invited to speak at the hearing titled “The Chinese Communist Party’s Threat to America.”
They included Foundation for Defense of Democracies China Program chair Matthew Pottinger and Hoover Institution senior fellow H.R. McMaster, both of whom were security advisers to former US president Donald Trump.
Human rights advocate Tong Yi (童屹) — a former secretary to Chinese dissident Wei Jingsheng (魏京生) — and Alliance for American Manufacturing president Scott Paul also attended.
McMaster’s opening statements were interrupted by two protesters calling for cooperation with China before they were removed.
The proceedings lasted three hours, during which the witnesses testified on topics including TikTok, the fentanyl crisis, semiconductors, food security and propaganda.
The military threat China poses to Taiwan was also a main topic of concern.
McMaster emphasized the role of “hard power” in deterrence, highlighting the US$19 billion backlog of arms Taiwan has already purchased to make it “indigestible.”
Frailties China’s economy incurred as it raced to surpass the US are beginning to show cracks in the system, he said.
“What better way to divert the disappointments of the Chinese people than through jingoistic nationalist sentiment focused largely on Taiwan?” he said.
The presidential election in Taiwan next year would not be viewed favorably by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), who might also perceive weakness in the US during what is likely to be a fractious election season in the same year, McMaster said.
Lagging deterrence capabilities and doubts within Beijing on US willingness to defend Taiwan “make it a dangerous period,” he added.
Xi might also act within a “fleeting window of opportunity” before the US can adapt to the countermeasures China has formulated in response to US advantages, McMaster said.
Tong emphasized the fundamental similarities between Americans and Chinese, with both wanting freedom as proven by the “blank paper” protests across China against its COVID-19 rules.
“The ‘traditional Chinese’ wouldn’t just obey authority,” she said. “Look at what Taiwan has showcased to us” by keeping traditions while also creating a vibrant democracy.
“Taiwan’s example is a sore [point] for the CCP. That’s the main reason why they would like to take Taiwan over, to say that the Chinese people only deserve dictatorship,” she added.
The CCP fears its own people above all, Pottinger said.
He raised as an example Xi’s “overnight” reversal on COVID-19 policies after widespread protests.
In response to China’s threat, Pottinger recommended keeping channels of communication with Beijing open — especially at the highest levels — to prevent Xi from making a “grave miscalculation.”
However, he also urged the US government and people to be honest with themselves that Beijing has no interest in collaborating with other countries to solve global issues.
Echoing sentiments expressed during the hearing, Gallagher told reporters afterward that the threat China poses surpasses that of the former Soviet Union.
Since the US and other Western nations were never as economically integrated with the Soviet Union as they are with China, there was never a need to consider selective economic decoupling, he said.
Xi has studied the collapse of the Soviet Union and plans to avoid its pitfalls, making China a more complicated and threatening competitor, he added.
Expressing concern that “time is not on our side” when it comes to a cross-strait conflict, Gallagher urged a more concerted effort to arm Taiwan, deploy a smarter Indo-Pacific military posture and reduce economic reliance on China.
Asked about reports that the committee might visit Taiwan, Gallagher said it would depend on the members, but there is no concrete plan at the moment.
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