By Rep. Ted S. Yoho It's been no secret that U.S.-China relations have soured significantly over the past decade. Economically, diplomatically, and militarily, our two nations have steered towards disagreement over compromise on a great deal of issues, despite living in a time where globalization has made the world seem like a much smaller place. China deserves some praise for the economic progress it has recorded over the past 20 years, lifting millions out of poverty and into the middle class. Today many in China enjoy a standard of living that would have been unthinkable just a few decades prior. The economic engine that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has built for itself has not just survived but thrived, jumping to the 2nd largest economy in the world. Therefore, it's puzzling why China continues to take advantage of international financial institutions, particularly in the WTO where it has identified and hides itself as a developing nation. Since its ascension to WTO membership in 2001, China's Communist party has repeatedly employed this tactic to obtain preferential treatment under trade agreements with other countries, despite every other member nation besides the United States having less economic resources. Officials in the People's Republic of China (PRC) may argue that, although China's overall GDP ranks 2nd internationally and continues to grow at a rapid pace, there are still large populations living in poverty. Therefore, China must continue to receive preferential treatment under lending and trade agreements in order to effectively care for these communities, despite reclaiming land masses in the East Sea, building up a significant blue water navy presence, and spearheading a national space program. In fact, the United States also has significant populations of people living in poverty. So does Canada and much of Europe. To those PRC officials, I would ask how they would respond if the world's largest economic powers asked all nations to judge their standing according to its worst socioeconomic factors. You cannot be the world's fearless leader while also claiming to be a recovering patient. But not content to only play the victim, China has also repeatedly abused WTO rules by deploying illegal export restraints--including quotas, licensing, minimum prices, duties and other restrictions--on an array of products and raw material inputs. These restraints are aimed at benefiting Chinese producers exclusively and at the expense of foreign producers. At the same time, China continues to engage in corporate espionage and forced technology transfer, creating a hostile and unfair business environment for all kinds of foreign investment. The issue the people of China face is not one of Western arrogance, but one of injustice and inequality brought on by their communist government. It stems from a system that keeps state-owned industries locked behind bureaucratic firewalls and siphons most of the profits to those entrenched in power. That the CCP has failed in its promise to deliver proportional economic results to its entire population is not a justification for requiring the rest of the world to treat China's economy as though it has "handle with care" written on the front. Every single member of the WTO must stand together to demand rulebreakers like China be held responsible and call for transparent procedures for self-identifying developing nations status. That's why I recently introduced the Enforcing Accountability and Transparency in International Trade Act, which would require USTR to develop a strategy for facilitating the full implementation of agreements under WTO rules and ensure that wealthy, high-income nations cannot abuse trade agreements by declaring developing nations status to receive "special or differential" treatment. For too long the United States has turned a blind eye to much of China's unfair practices in business and trade, and it's been the American producer and consumer who have paid the price. It's time that the United States and its fellow countries assert their rights under WTO rules to hold China accountable for its behavior on the world stage and ensure a level playing field for all.

By Ted Yoho Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) have blatantly disregarded the agreement between the UK and China that allows autonomy for Hong Kong. The protests going on today in Hong Kong are a direct result of the CCP's lack of respect for self-determination and rule of law. The mainland government's actions have demonstrated that the word and commitments of Xi and the Chinese ruling class cannot be trusted by the global community. This is yet another shameful situation for Xi and a self-inflicted wound by the CCP. In 1997, the UK agreed to cede its claim to Hong Kong and return control of the territory to the People's Republic of China (PRC). Part of the handover agreement requires Hong Kong to be an autonomous administrative district with a free market-based economic system for no less than 50 years. Chinese and British leaders agreed upon those terms in good faith, but now the Chinese leadership is ready to tear up that agreement. The protests in Hong Kong over the past year are solely the result of Xi and the CCP's machinations regarding the special administrative region and a lust for authoritarian power. Their goal is to remove any form of democratic governance from within their territorial boundaries. In essence, Beijing has broadcast to the world that "the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party cannot to be trusted." What does this say about the future relationship between Taiwan, the Republic of China, and the mainland PRC? Xi and his communists have made threatening overtures stating that Taiwan is part of China and that the PRC will "reunify" the two nations by "draw[ing] blood if necessary." The idea that Taiwan is a territory belonging to the PRC is inherently false. This notion comes from a vague meeting in 1992 referred to inappropriately as the "1992 consensus." At that meeting, the concept of "one China" was discussed, but no consensus was agreed upon. The conclusion of that meeting has been interpreted differently by Taiwanese and PRC officials, but the fact remains: Taiwan is not and never has been part of communist China. It is time for China to recognize Taiwan as the independent nation that it is. Taiwan has a sovereign and defined border, and its own form of democratic government, economy, military, flag and national anthem. The people of Taiwan view themselves as Taiwanese, not Chinese. It is time for the US government to stand firm with Taiwan as a sovereign, self-ruling, independent and democratic nation. For more than 40 years, the US government has been mandated by law to furnish defensive weapons to protect Taiwan's sovereignty. If it does not lead the world on this issue and encourage partner nations to do the same, China will fill the gap and attempt to take Taiwan by force. This much was indicated last month when Beijing removed calls for "peaceful unification" with Taiwan in official documents. That is why I will be introducing legislation requiring the US to defend Taiwan from forceful unification with the PRC. In the prelude to any conflict, once the dominos begin to fall it is already too late to prepare. As we are witnessing the fate of the Hong Kong people, we must remember that this might only be the first domino. The next could easily be Taiwan.

By Ted Yoho The world is seeing the emergence of another health crisis originating in China. Exact details regarding the exposure, virulence and mortality rates of the disease remain unclear. The lack of transparency from Chinese officials has only worsened the spread of a virus that does not discriminate based on ethnicity, nationality or political beliefs. Rapid diagnosis and open collaboration on information sharing is crucial in preventing the early spread of new epidemics. Governments need all hands on deck to keep populations safe from disease. This kind of collaboration was present with past outbreaks, such as when SARS and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) emerged on the world stage. In 2002, Chinese officials stalled their reporting in the wake of the SARS epidemic emerging in China. Eventually, the world learned that more than 8,000 people contracted this disease and nearly 800 people died from it. This new coronavirus is on track to surpass that number. We learned that the rate of SARS transmission was worsened by deception and incompetence on the part of the People's Republic of China. It is essential that the US bring every capable world health partner into the conversation for keeping harmful diseases from the country's shores. Interestingly enough, Taiwan was the first nation to diagnose the cause, which reaffirms their role as an invaluable ally on global health and disease prevention efforts. The US must take the lead on inviting their assistance. Since 1996, Taiwan has invested more than US$6 billion in international medical and humanitarian aid efforts in more than 80 countries. During the 2014 Ebola crisis, Taiwan donated US$1 million and provided 100,000 sets of personal protective equipment. Taiwan has proven its capability and determination on the global stage to contribute to disease prevention efforts time and again, and Taiwan deserves the opportunity to participate in the international health arena. Despite Taiwan's contributions, China has steadily increased its marginalization of the nation through provocative military actions and pressuring their remaining diplomatic partners to exclude them from international organizations. Although Taiwan participated in the WHO's annual summit as an observer for years, the Taiwanese delegation has been blocked from attending since 2017, for seemingly no other reason than to placate the insecurities of Beijing. This pressure from China seems even more hypocritical given that it is at least partially responsible for the spread of the coronavirus across much of Asia, including Taiwan. Undoubtedly, this should be of concern to Americans as hundreds of people across the nation are currently being tested for coronavirus. Taiwan's exclusion from the WHO puts the world at risk. That is why I have called for the re-establishment of Taiwan's observer status on numerous occasions. On Jan. 8 last year, I introduced a bipartisan bill with the support of US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel and ranking member Mike McCaul that would direct the US secretary of state to develop a strategy to regain Taiwan's observer status in the WHO's World Health Assembly. The bill, H.R. 353, passed the House unanimously on Jan. 22 last year, demonstrating the US government's resolve in defending Taiwan's seat at the table. It would be naive to think the world community can effectively combat cross-border infectious diseases, especially in the Indo-Pacific region, while excluding a population of 23 million people in Taiwan from participating in disease prevention efforts happening in their own backyard. The health of the world needs and benefits from the expertise of Taiwan's healthcare researchers. The US' expectation is that China looks beyond its pride and works together with Taiwan and the rest of the world before all continents become infected by this new Chinese plague. Ted Yoho is the US representative for Florida's Third Congressional District and is the ranking Republican member of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and Nonproliferation.