Senate ranking member presses assistant secretary on China’s strategy toward Taiwan

A Senate ranking member pressed an assistant secretary at a hearing about China’s multipronged strategy toward Taiwan, urging clearer public accounting of U.S. plans and pressing for broader international support to deter coercion.

The ranking member told the hearing he had asked Taiwan’s U.S. representative what would most deter China from invading Taiwan and said the reply was that providing funding support to Ukraine would send the right signal. He warned that China is building out ‘‘extraordinary military capabilities, naval, space, rocketry,’’ and is using economic coercion, threatening overflights and gray‑zone tactics including disinformation spread through social platforms.

The assistant secretary described Beijing’s objective as ‘‘to try to pressure, and coerce, intimidate, and isolate Taiwan,’’ and said U.S. responses include backing Taiwan’s diplomatic partners and strengthening unofficial ties, which the official described as ‘‘at least as important’’ as formal diplomatic relations.

On the question of whether U.S. efforts have kept pace, the assistant secretary acknowledged the number of Taiwan’s formal diplomatic partners has decreased over time but said many unofficial partnerships have strengthened and that more countries are publicly recognizing that peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are a matter of international concern.

The ranking member urged that expanding Taiwan’s participation in international bodies and deepening its ties would raise the diplomatic and economic costs to any would‑be aggressor. He also asked the assistant secretary to outline how China is using economic tools to influence Taiwan.

The assistant secretary called Beijing’s economic approach a ‘‘mixed picture’’—robust commercial ties across the Strait but also instances where Beijing appeared to curtail trade or threaten agreements in sectors Beijing judged politically useful. The assistant secretary emphasized U.S. efforts to ‘‘partner with Taiwan and other countries around the world’’ and to offer tangible benefits to countries that maintain or expand ties to Taiwan.

On the classified China strategy, the assistant secretary confirmed the administration had made the document available ‘‘for in‑camera review’’ consistent with ‘‘section 6511 of the FY22 NDAA’’ and said staff are coordinating an opportunity for the senator’s team to review it. The ranking member said the statute called for some material to be presented publicly and said he expects the State Department to follow that requirement.

The hearing closed with a broader exchange about China’s global footprint and U.S. diplomacy. The assistant secretary stressed that the United States seeks to offer partners choices and protect their sovereignty. The in‑camera review of the administration’s China strategy was the most recent procedural development noted during the exchange.