View of Tiananmen Square during the student protest of 1989, prior to the violent crackdown by the Chinese People's Liberation Army. (Source: Twitter user @Majian53)

Bolstering U.S. Alliances as U.S.-China Tension Grows

In Hong Kong last week, candlelight vigils marked the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and the deaths of thousands of protesters at the hands of the Chinese military. The somber event marked the final instances of public commemoration in Hong Kong as China prepares to enact a set of sweeping, draconian measures aimed at further eroding the territory’s independence.

From “wolf warrior” diplomacy to disinformation campaigns, China’s efforts to expand its global power have increasingly resembled a "new Cold War." Hudson's latest report, "A Global Survey of US-China Competition in the Coronavirus Era," spotlights these growing tensions and provides a region-by-region look at the CCP’s efforts to use the coronavirus pandemic for strategic gains, as well as the necessity of strong U.S. alliances.

Speaking with Hudson Senior Fellow Rebeccah Heinrichs on Monday, Congressman Mike Gallagher  outlined the stakes of the "new Cold War:"

 "I do believe ... that the [CCP] may be the single greatest challenge our nation has ever confronted. ... We've never been involved in a great power struggle with a country whose economy is so evenly matched with ours. ... The biggest lesson we've learned in the coronavirus crisis is ... how brittle our defense industrial base is ... and how many of our supply chains have a road that go back to Beijing. ... How we selectively decouple from China economically without punishing U.S. consumers, I think, will be the most significant question of the next decade."

Congressman Gallagher also touched on recent examples of U.S. allies pushing back:

"Britons oppose Huawei's inclusion into their 5G network … which is why we've had this positive story of Boris Johnson reversing his policy on 5G. A leading Canadian telecom company [announced] that Huawei would not be building Canada's 5G network. Our friends in Australia have pushed for an independent inquiry into the coronavirus origins. They’ve experienced China’s wrath as a result. It’s telling that wolf warrior diplomacy expresses how [the CCP] is trying to drive wedges throughout the free world, but are actually uniting the free world. The Five Eyes is pulling together on this issue, though we have a long way to go."

For more on how the "new Cold War" is shaping U.S. alliances, tune in next Tuesday when Hudson hosts U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Carla Sands for a discussion on how the U.S.-Denmark relationship can help counter efforts by China and Russia to exert influence in the Arctic.

Quotes have been edited for length and clarity.

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