Chicago December 19, 2024
In recent years, the United States has been working hard to protect itself from potential threats by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The US federal government has taken steps like trying to prevent China from buying farmland in America.
They worry that China could use the land for spying. Despite these efforts, a new report says the US has missed a major way that China is influencing America.
The report, called “The Near Enemy: China’s Subnational Reach Into the United States,” was released by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). It explains that China is using relationships with local and state governments in the US to keep its influence strong across the country. According to the report, these local governments care more about jobs and growing the economy than about security worries.
The report points out that these local efforts allow China to get around the bigger security actions taken by the national government. This is because local and state governments are eager to work with China, seeing it as a good partner for economic development, despite broader tensions like the trade war started under President Trump.
The FDD report suggests that the US needs a better-coordinated approach to handle China’s influence. This includes looking at how China uses local and commercial ways to reach into the US. The report’s authors believe that without a united strategy, China will continue to find ways to extend its influence in America, even as Washington becomes stricter.
