US Senators from both major parties are planning to introduce three bills targeting China over its treatment of minority groups, dissidents, and Taiwan, emphasizing security and human rights as President Donald Trump focuses on trade with Beijing. The bills, have Democratic and Republican sponsors, a rare display of bipartisanship in the divided Congress.
The desire for a hard line on China is one of the few truly bipartisan sentiments in Congress, with many lawmakers supporting Trump’s efforts to rebalance the bilateral trade relationship. “The United States cannot afford to be weak in the face of the People’s Republic of China and its aggression around the world,” said Democrat Jeff Merkley of Oregon, a lead sponsor of all three bills. Merkley emphasized that “no matter who is in the White House, America’s values of freedom and human rights must remain at the heart of a clear and principled vision that guides our leadership on the global stage.”
One bill, co-sponsored by Republican John Cornyn of Texas, would deny entry into the United States of current or former Chinese government officials who were deemed to have engaged in the forced repatriation of members of China’s Uyghur minority. Human rights groups accuse China of widespread abuses of Uyghurs, a mainly Muslim ethnic minority numbering about 10 million in its northwestern region of Xinjiang. Beijing denies any abuses.
Another bill, co-sponsored by Republican John Curtis of Utah, aims to help Taiwan as the island faces increasing pressure from China. It would support countries in Latin America and the Caribbean that maintain official diplomatic relations with Taiwan and would take other steps to deepen coordination with Taipei. China claims the democratically governed island as its own and has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.
A third bill, co-sponsored by Republican Dan Sullivan of Alaska, seeks to combat “transnational repression” – efforts by any foreign government to reach beyond its own borders to intimidate, harass or harm dissidents, journalists or activists.
Some lawmakers and experts have expressed concerns that Trump’s focus on trade may lead to a de-emphasis on security issues. “It does appear that President Trump is keen to negotiate some kind of deal with China, and gaps are opening between his approach to China and the approaches of some members of his team, as well as with Congress, which overall has been quite hawkish on China,” said Bonnie Glaser, an Asia expert at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
Trump “cares about opening foreign markets to American trade, and that’s what he’s always cared about. And that is going to run counter to a lot of national security imperatives,” said Michael Sobolik, who specializes in U.S.-China relations at the Hudson Institute. The US and Chinese economic officials are set to meet in Stockholm to try to tackle their longstanding disputes, hoping to extend a truce by three months and keep sharply higher tariffs at bay.¹