WASHINGTON—Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered an opening statement during a hearing titled “Shared Threats: Indo-Pacific Alliances and Burden Sharing in Today’s Geopolitical Environment.” In her remarks, Ranking Member Shaheen said that there is bipartisan recognition of the threat China poses and that strengthening our alliances across the globe will help us counter China’s economic influence and disinformation, while strengthening American companies and workers.
You can watch her opening remarks here.
“From the South China Sea, where China’s coast guard harasses Philippine forces to Beijing’s military exercises over the Taiwan Strait, there is bipartisan agreement that these aggressive actions threaten national security,” said Senator Shaheen. “But as we know, the impacts of China’s rise are not isolated to Asia. Debt trap diplomacy with infrastructure projects in Africa, the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals into Latin America, economic coercion in Europe over Lithuania’s support for Taiwan—China’s influence can be felt across the globe.”
The Ranking Member’s opening remarks, as delivered, are below.
Thank you, Chairman Risch. Welcome to our witnesses. We so appreciate your being here this morning.
From the South China Sea, where China’s coast guard harasses Philippine forces to Beijing’s military exercises over the Taiwan Strait, there is bipartisan agreement that these aggressive actions threaten national security. But as we know, the impacts of China’s rise are not isolated to Asia. Debt trap diplomacy with infrastructure projects in Africa, the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals into Latin America, economic coercion in Europe over Lithuania’s support for Taiwan—China’s influence can be felt across the globe. That’s certainly the case in Ukraine where China and North Korea have been actively supporting Putin’s war machine. Beijing is watching how we respond to Ukraine as it weighs its options in Taiwan.
Presidents of both parties have recognized the challenge that China poses. President Trump took important steps by implementing export controls during his first term. President Biden not only kept those controls in place, his administration strengthened them.
Our allies in Asia—as the Chairman pointed out—also recognize the threat that China poses. In 2022 Japan committed to increasing its defense spending. Australia has made historic investments in AUKUS—our trilateral defense partnership with the UK. And Taiwan is boosting its defense budget to over 3% of its GDP.
I agree that American allies should pay their fair share of defense spending, but we also should acknowledge that our Indo-Pacific partners are stepping up. And U.S. support for these alliances isn’t charity—it’s a strategic investment. America’s alliances around the world are one of our greatest security assets.
South Korea hosts eight U.S. military bases and 23,000 U.S. service members. Japan not only allows the U.S. to station 55,000 troops across 15 major bases—it also helps pay for them, contributing $2 billion dollars a year. These partnerships are mutually beneficial and go beyond our military.
Whether in Europe or Latin America, our allies help us to counter China’s economic influence and disinformation. The combined power of American and European markets together expands our ability to set AI standards. And our alliances support American companies and workers. Last week, I attended a defense industry roundtable on AUKUS in New Hampshire. Strengthening our submarine industrial base—like the work being done at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard—does more than give us a strategic edge over China. It creates high-quality American jobs, and it supports our domestic industry. So instead of threatening or undermining friendly nations with tariffs, I think we should be strengthening our alliances.
NATO has contained the Soviet Union and Russia for decades. I’d be interested in hearing from our witnesses on what mutual defense arrangements for the Indo-Pacific might look like. We need to explore every advantage that we have.
INDOPACOM—our military command in the region—has also led the way in implementing the Women, Peace, and Security Act. The commander recently told me that INDOPACOM has been more effective than any other U.S. regional command in ensuring women play key roles in decision-making. That’s a strategic strength, and we should build on it if we want to combat the growing link between security in Asia and security in Europe.
As we know, the world is more connected than ever. I hope our witnesses this morning will speak not only to the challenges we face but also to the opportunities we can seize at this historic time. So, I look forward to hearing your thoughts, and I’m delighted that you’re joining us. Thank you.
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