Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley called for an increased economic and military ramp-up to curtail the growing influence of China amid a low point between the two nations.
“Communist China is the greatest threat to American security and prosperity by far,” Haley declared during her speech at the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. “It is the most dangerous foreign threat we’ve faced since the Second World War.”
BIDEN TRIES TO SHAKE LOW MARKS ON ECONOMY WITH ‘BIDENOMICS’ PUSH
Chief among Haley’s solutions to “Chinese aggression” was strengthening the nation’s domestic, economic, and military might. “As president, my top priority will be strengthening America’s economy and America’s military,” she said. “We will protect America’s prosperity and homeland from Chinese aggression.”
Haley warned about China’s ever-growing “police state” and the Chinese military, which she said “has become even stronger.”
“China’s police state is more comprehensive. It has destroyed freedom in Hong Kong. It has deepened its genocide of the Uyghurs. It is threatening Taiwan daily,” said Haley. “Its no limits alliance with Russia has cemented, and of course, there was COVID. Despite its ongoing attempts at [a] cover-up, the Chinese Communist Party bears responsibility for the worst worldwide pandemic in a century with up to 20 million deaths.”
The U.S. intelligence community remains divided over the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. A declassified report released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence last week did not conclusively show that the coronavirus was genetically engineered in the Wuhan lab or spread through exposure to an infected animal. “Almost all IC agencies assess that SARS-CoV-2 was not genetically engineered,” the 10-page report noted. It also stated that “most agencies assess that SARS-CoV-2 was not laboratory-adapted,” while “some are unable to make a determination.”
Haley praised her former boss and 2024 rival, Donald Trump, for his 2020 trade deal with China during her address but stressed more is needed. “President Donald Trump deserves credit for upending this bipartisan consensus. He made both parties take off their blinders,” Haley said.
“But being cleareyed is not enough. It’s not the same as having the right solutions and the necessary determination to protect America,” she continued. “Trump did too little about the rest of the Chinese threat. He did not put us on a stronger military foothold in Asia. He did not stop the flow of American technology and investment into the Chinese military. He did not effectively rally our allies against the Chinese threat.”
She also criticized Trump’s friendliness toward China’s President Xi Jinping, whom the former president has spoken of in fond terms. “In his zeal to befriend President Xi, Trump congratulated the Communist Party on its 70th anniversary of conquering China. That sent the wrong message to the world. Chinese Communism must be condemned, never congratulated,” Haley said. Haley went on to slam Trump’s successor, President Joe Biden, on his administration’s interactions with China.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken went on a two-day diplomatic trip to China earlier this month and met with Xi and other Chinese leaders. He was the first U.S. secretary of state to visit Beijing in five years. Blinken was set to visit China in February, but after the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon that flew over U.S. military sites, the trip was postponed. Republicans on Capitol Hill accused the Biden administration of being weak on China. They also criticized Blinken for saying the U.S. does not “support Taiwan independence.” Haley called Blinken’s trip “a gold-plated invitation for more Chinese aggression, not less.”
Haley has long spoken out against China and called for U.S. support of Taiwan against China’s coercion. “We and our allies should give Taiwan everything it needs to defend itself. We should make sure the American naval presence in the Taiwan Strait remains strong,” Haley said. “And we should let China know now that an invasion of Taiwan would not just be met with a few slap-on-the-wrist sanctions. It would mean a full-blown economic decoupling and would massively damage China.”
Other actions Haley called for included banning Chinese investors from purchasing U.S. land, banning American companies from lobbying on behalf of China, and blocking American companies from selling technology to China.
“China’s abuse of American businesses is worse than ever,” Haley also said. “Every U.S. company that works in China is effectively required to support the Chinese military. They don’t have a choice. The Communist Party is stealing our investments at a tune of $600 billion a year. It’s using American enterprise to undermine American strength.”
Haley cited a lack of military recruitment among the Army, Navy, and Air Force as one reason America is falling behind China. “It’s time to face a hard truth. Our military strength is not where it should be. It must be transformed to meet today’s and tomorrow’s challenges,” said Haley.
“A stronger military is the linchpin to our national security and to preventing wars,” she added.
Haley called for America to grow closer to allies who can help ward off China’s influence. “We must also rally more nations to our side. We should deepen our military ties with Japan, South Korea, and Australia, and forge stronger bonds with India and the Philippines,” Haley said.
Last week Biden hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House for a state visit. But the administration denied the visit was to counteract China. “This wasn’t about leveraging India to be some sort of counterweight. India is a sovereign, independent state,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a White House press briefing.
Haley then went on to call for the U.S. to help Ukraine defeat Russia. “A Russian defeat would be an enormous loss for China and a true victory for peace,” said Haley. “The events of this past weekend show how weak and shaky the Russian leadership is. Now is the time to seize the moment and help Ukraine bring this war to a decisive end.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Russian President Vladimir Putin faced a rebellion from Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and his troops over the weekend. But the rebellion was stopped after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko brokered a truce between Putin and Prigozhin.
“If we rally now, the Communist Chinese Party will eventually end up on the ash heap of history like the Soviet Communist Party,” Haley concluded.
