Official White House China Visit Deemed 'Pandering' by Rubio

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan is currently on a three-day diplomatic trip in China to foster cooperation and communication channels amongst the two nations.

Republicans have criticized Sullivan’s visit, claiming it forms part of President Joe Biden’s disoriented China foreign policy strategy.

According to the White House, Sullivan and CCP officials discussed cooperation on counternarcotics, military-to-military communications, and AI safety and risk.

US Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), who has consistently supported anti-Chinese Communist Party (CCP) legislation, demeaned Sullivan’s China visit.

“The Chinese Communist Party continues to make a mockery of the Biden-Harris Administration by killing Americans by supplying fentanyl precursors, stealing cutting-edge research, and exploiting massive trade loopholes,” said Rubio. “Pandering and groveling in Beijing won’t make America stronger, safer, or more prosperous.”

Rubio has proposed the US restrict its trade partnerships with China and supports increasing tariffs on Chinese goods.

Recently, Rubio sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin urging the latter to prevent Chinese battery company Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL) from doing business with the US military and defense contractors.

Rubio cited CATL’s extensive cooperation with China’s military, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), as grounds meriting Secretary Lloyd’s blacklisting of CATL.

Lloyd could leverage authority granted to him by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021 and place CATL on a Section 1260H List, effectively prohibiting the US military from contracting CATL’s services. 

“We expect that the DoD will act quickly to add CATL to this list and diligently enforce measures to prevent the U.S. military from any further exposure to CATL systems,” concludes the letter.

Earlier this summer, Rubio again sought to frustrate Chinese firms expanding their US operations by harnessing regulators’ authority against Chinese companies, including giants such as Shein.