U. S. announced its opposition to China in Indo-Pacific region
2023.02.09 11:58
U. S. announced its opposition to China in Indo-Pacific region
By Tiffany Smith
Budrigannews.com – U.S. Senate Democrats said on Thursday that Washington needs to devote more diplomatic and security resources to the Indo-Pacific in order to counter China’s efforts to establish a regional sphere of influence and become the most powerful power in the world.
The report was issued by the majority Democratic staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee almost exactly one year after President Joe Biden’s administration released its strategy to modernize regional alliances, strengthen new partnerships, and invest in relationships.
At a hearing on Thursday, where Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman will testify regarding China policy, the chairman of the committee, Senator Robert Menendez, is anticipated to talk about the report.
Menendez made the following statement: “We must match ambitious policy with ambitious resourcing if we are serious about advancing U.S. interests in Asia and competing with (China).”
The strategy’s goals should be sharpened and additional efforts should be made to ensure sufficient resources are available to support its efforts, according to the Senate report.
According to the report, “none have made the necessary tradeoffs to ensure that sources are allocated in a manner commensurate with such prioritization,” despite the fact that “despite four successive administrations identifying Asia as a priority region for U.S. attention and assistance, none have made such tradeoffs.”
For instance, despite the fact that the Indo-Pacific region is home to more than half of the world’s population, the report stated that the administration’s request for foreign assistance for the region for the fiscal year that will end in September 2023 was only $1.7 billion, or 7.7% of the total budget for foreign assistance.
After a period of uncertainty regarding its commitment to Asia under then-U.S. President Donald Trump and concerted efforts by rival China to increase its own influence, the United States is attempting to reassert itself in the region.
According to the report, the Biden administration must significantly increase federal funding for diplomacy and development, allocate a larger portion of the Department of State’s operating budget, and prioritize Indo-Pacific foreign assistance.
Working closely with Congress, including providing a detailed list of its plans for putting the Indo-Pacific Strategy into action, and advancing economic integration with countries in the region, including giving a meaningful trade program with Taiwan top priority, are two of its recommendations.
One of the few truly bipartisan sentiments in the deeply divided U.S. Congress is a desire for a hard line when dealing with Beijing. Both Republicans and Biden’s Democrats have called for increased efforts to counteract China’s global influence.
The United States shot down a Chinese spy balloon on Saturday for spying over U.S. territory, escalating tensions between the two countries recently.
The Chinese balloon’s appearance last week sparked political outrage in Washington and forced Secretary of State Antony Blinken to reschedule a trip to Beijing that the two countries had planned to repair their strained ties. On Sunday, Blinken would have arrived in Beijing.
