WASHINGTON–House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) called out the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) on Tuesday for granting licenses that allow critical American technology to be sold to U.S. adversaries.. This comes after the recent discovery of western-made components used inside the Chinese spy balloon that was shot down off of the coast of South Carolina last month.
During a hearing held by the House Foreign Affairs Committee, members expressed concerns about the Biden administration’s failures to stop the transfer of U.S. technology into the hands of the Chinese military. Multiple members of the committee said that China’s political and ideological expansion using its Belt and Road Initiative, an infrastructure development strategy for developing countries, not only presents a geopolitical challenge to the U.S. but also affects the state of many countries around the world.
McCaul said it was in the national interest to“move beyond the false belief that the CCP will ever deal in good faith.”
The recent discovery of a potential China-Russia arms deal and the scheduled meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin next week was also discussed at the hearing.
Congressman Cory Mills (R-Fla.) discussed the possibility of decoupling with China and categorized the nation as a “state sponsor of terrorism,” citing China’s support of Iran and human rights violations in Hong Kong and Xin Jiang.
Under Secretary of BIS, Alan F. Estevez, promised to add more military-affiliated Chinese companies and individuals to their entity list. CEO Scott Nathan from the International Development Finance Corporation, the U.S. equivalent to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, vowed to invest in private sectors such as gas infrastructure and cell networks, avoiding the outcome that is China’s debt trap diplomacy.
USAID and the rest of the departments promised “freedom, democracy, and sustainable development around the world.”
