U.S. Approves $567 Million for Taiwan’s Defense; China Tests Missiles Inland After ICBM Launch

Welcome to China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. Our top story, Washington says yes to over $560 million in weapons sales to Taiwan. Plus, how does each administration's arms sales to the island stack up against each other? A look at the highlights. Chinese military testing puts Taiwan on high alert after firing multiple missiles inland. The round of Chinese missile tests comes just after Beijing sent up its most powerful warhead in 40 years. A push toward decoupling the U.S. and Chinese markets. Congressmen are supporting a bill to discourage Wall Street from investing in China. And China issues a series of measures to spur on its struggling economy, including the purchase of $28 billion in government bonds. But will it work to boost investor confidence? One of the most important things about any economy is stability, is that you can guarantee what's going to happen, that you can trust the actors that are involved. And when you're dealing with the Chinese Communist Party, you just can't guarantee that. President Biden approving over $560 million in military support for Taiwan on Sunday. But how does his administration stack up against others in terms of arms sales to the island? First, zooming in on the most recent aid. This comes after China fired multiple missiles into its western region over the weekend. The launches put Taiwan on high alert. And the island is keeping a close eye on developments. Back to USA to Taiwan. Taipei pledged to use the aid to bolster its defense capabilities, but emphasized that it's not looking for conflict. The Chinese Communist Party sees Taiwan as part of China despite never having ruled it. The U.S. doesn't have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but sells weapons to the island so it can defend itself. So how does each administration's arms sales stack up against each other? Here are some numbers from the five most recent administrations. So far, arms sales under President Biden come in at the second lowest, a little over $6 billion over one term. That's according to data from the U.S.-Taiwan Business Council. Former President Trump approved the most amount of weapons sales to the island, over $18 billion in just one term. Arms sales to Taiwan during the Clinton administration was the lowest, while sales under Bush and Obama were similar to Biden's per term, though slightly higher on average. Despite the sales having been approved, the U.S. is having trouble sending the weapons to Taiwan on time. As of this June, the island is still waiting for over $20 billion worth of weapons to be delivered. Chinese Communist Party head Xi Jinping called Taiwan, quote, And over the weekend, the Chinese foreign minister voiced Beijing's belief that Taiwan is not an independent state, and by extension, Taiwan's right to participate in the UN or its affiliated bodies. He also said Taiwan would, in his words, eventually return to Chinese control, and that, quote, The Taiwanese government responded by saying Taiwan is a sovereign nation, and that only the government elected by Taiwanese people can represent Taiwan. Taiwan reported that China launched multiple waves of missiles inland, days after it test-fired its first intercontinental ballistic missile since 1980. According to Taiwan's defense ministry, the missiles were fired on Saturday in northwestern China, and regions ranging from around 2,300 miles to just 1,200 miles from Taiwan. The round of launches come after last week, when Beijing launched an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific. It's the first time China set up this kind of long-range nuclear-capable warhead in more than four decades. Taiwan warned that the test fueled instability in the region. Also last week, Taiwan detected 72 Chinese military aircraft and eight ships near its waters within a 30-hour time period. Taiwan also detected Chinese military activities, including several waves of live-fire drills near Korea and Japan. U.S. leaders say they are clear-eyed about the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party, but strong economic ties often hamper progress in holding the regime accountable. Now, two lawmakers are setting a goal to begin divestment from China, starting on Wall Street. NTD's Melina Weisskopf reports. Lawmakers are pushing legislation to encourage Americans to divest from the Chinese regime, a heavy lift considering how intertwined the U.S. and China economies are. When you think of the challenge we face with the Soviet Union, our economies were not intertwined nearly to the degree that we are with China. And so when you look at our supply chain... Senator Marco Rubio and Congressman John Muellenaar introduced a bill to revoke the lower capital gains tax rate on investments in communist China. Senator Rubio wrote of the bill, Wall Street continues to give money to our adversaries and reap rewards from the American tax system. Enough is enough. Investments in Chinese enterprises would instead be taxed at the highest income rate. Additionally, a bipartisan bill to crack down on the regime's violation of U.S. trade laws advanced in the House earlier this week. The string of legislative action follows weeks of D.C. policymakers zeroing in on the Chinese Communist Party's efforts to erode American values from the inside out. The CCP and other foreign adversaries seek to keep us fighting, Republicans and Democrats fighting with each other, because in that state we are much weaker. And the House this month passed a slate of bills to address the CCP's human rights abuses, reduce its influence on college campuses, address China's E.V. dominance and sanction CCP officials, among other measures. Xi's goal is to cover the world in communism. We, we are the ones who stand in his way. Over in the Senate, Republicans unveiled their 2025 plans to counter China. They include bolstering support for Taiwan while addressing the Chinese regime's economic subversion and abuse of U.S. diplomats. Reporting from Washington, D.C., Melina Weiskopf, NTD News. China is releasing a series of measures to stimulate its struggling economy. The Chinese central bank has injected billions of dollars to boost investments. On Monday, it announced the purchase of more than 28 billion dollars in government bonds. The bank also lowered interest rates on Friday to stimulate consumption. Reuters, citing sources, reported that megacities Shanghai and Shenzhen are planning to lift key home purchase restrictions in the coming weeks. Chinese stock markets responded positively, with the biggest daily gain since 2008. But is this enough to boost the confidence of investors to return to China? Steve Lanz with NTD's Capital Report spoke to Richard Stern, director of the Grower M. Herman Center for the Federal Budget at the Heritage Foundation, for his take. The first thing I'd always say is the only thing that governments can stimulate are their own paperwork and inflation. That's the only things that they can do. So, you know, what's been happening right here in China, right? You've had a socialist government that has micromanaged every aspect of the economy for decades, obviously. But what that has meant is that good investments, good ideas don't happen. And so you've got an economy that is wrapped around the axle where every investment decision, and I don't mean financial investments. I mean, where do we build new factories? What kind of buildings are built at all? Those sorts of decisions are all to the whims of the bureaucrats and politicians within the Communist Chinese Party. So what's happened now is a third of Chinese businesses are underwater. They're not profitable, which is really to say they don't produce things of use to the Chinese population. So the Chinese government is printing money, trying to pump it into the economy, hoping that will do something. What they really need to do is deregulate and let the private sector do what they do best. It's extremely concerning to me, knowing that Wall Street has been headfirst into Beijing for the past two decades at least. And from what I understand, there's still a lot of American pension plans invested in the Chinese economy. Talk to our viewers that may have their money there. Absolutely. So, you know, part of what's going on here is that one of the most important things about any economy is stability, is that you can guarantee what's going to happen, that you can trust the actors that are involved. And when you're dealing with the Chinese Communist Party, you just can't guarantee that. You can't trust that. And you're absolutely right. Unfortunately, a lot of American pensions have taken the hard-earned savings of American workers and dumped it into investments in China. And not only, of course, has this ended up helping to further human rights violations and strengthen the Chinese military, but it's also meant that these American savings are in businesses that are increasingly unprofitable, that are reliant on Chinese government subsidies, that are at the whim of all of the regulations and the problems that are going on there. And so this could have disastrous impacts going forward. Within the last year, a private Swiss bank sold all Chinese stocks and bonds it had been holding. Now, the Chinese stocks are rallying due to Beijing's stimulus measures, but the bank says it doesn't regret the move. The bank, Lombard Odier, holds roughly $250 billion in assets. That figure used to include $15 billion of Chinese stocks and bonds, now down to zero. The bank says it shifted the funds to U.S. financial products. A recent commentary by a Chinese economist is highlighting aggressive tactics used by the Chinese regime seeking to boost revenue amid a deepening financial crisis. Local officials are reportedly detaining businessmen and demanding money for their release. Commentators have likened the actions to kidnapping for ransom. Let's dive in. Chinese Communist Party officials frequently suppress and detain business owners under various pretexts, often to collect revenue and evade payments the state owes to those businesses. For example, a businesswoman in Guizhou province was detained by local authorities last year after demanding payment from the Chinese state. Recently, a recording revealed that authorities in Shandong province brazenly demanded about $1.4 million from a company, framing it as a fine for a so-called illegal sales scheme. The officials reportedly threatened that they couldn't really help companies, but could easily bring one down. This is just disguised extortion. It's really bad. They're using government power to bully the businesses and set traps, which has a terrible impact. It's brutal. The government is just a thug. The article noted that the lockdown and closures during China's three-year pandemic already weakened the Chinese economy. It went on to warn that if arbitrary detentions of entrepreneurs continue, it could lead to further economic turmoil. I believe it frightens business owners even more, making them less likely to invest. When personal property isn't safe, people may start hiding their assets or moving them abroad. This trend is likely to emerge and could be very detrimental to China's development. Coming up, four of China's neighbors are joining up with Washington for joint military drills. They're happening in the South China Sea as Beijing holds its own exercises in the region. China is expanding its global influence. How does this complicate American foreign policy? A former congresswoman shares her comments. Economic freedom or financial partnerships? A new report highlighting Beijing's influence over British higher education. More on that after the break, here on China In Focus. Welcome back to China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. A signal of deterrence over the weekend, aiming at Beijing. The US and four of China's neighbors are holding joint drills in the South China Sea. The Philippines, Australia, Japan and New Zealand. The action is a response to Beijing's rising aggression there. The United States and its allies have been increasing joint exercises in the Indo-Pacific. The joint drills were conducted within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, an area stretching 200 nautical miles from its coastline. The exercises came after Beijing ramped up pressure on the US ally. Chinese Coast Guard ships were recently caught ramming into Filipino boats and spraying the vessels with water cannons. Worth noting, China also carried out its own military exercises in the disputed waterway. More on the standoffs between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. Fishermen there say Chinese vessels have encircled the Scarborough Shoal. Both China and the Philippines claim the island. It's a traditional fishing ground for Filipino fishermen, and around 120 miles from the mainland Philippines. But now the fishermen have been blocked out of the area. Chinese vessels would reportedly drive out any boats that got close, keeping them over 40 miles away. Beijing has been tightening its control of the area. The Chinese Coast Guard said it would seize and detain foreign boats for up to 60 days if they trespass in the South China Sea. China claims almost all of the South China Sea. An international court ruled China's claim invalid back in 2016. China also sent a record number of ships near the Sabina Shoal, another island in the region. The Philippine Navy spotted 251 Chinese vessels there last week. They reportedly arrived after a Filipino Coast Guard ship went to patrol the island. And in Vietnam, a local official says a Vietnamese fishing boat was attacked in the South China Sea and 10 crew members were injured. But the official did not reveal which country the attacking boat came from. The conflict occurred near the Paracel Islands. It's in a disputed water claimed by both Vietnam and China. China is growing its global influence, but how do the regime's ambitions complicate Washington's foreign policy? To explain, Steve Lance with NTT's Capital Report spoke with Vicky Hartzler, commissioner at the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Commissioner Vicky Hartzler, thank you so much for joining us. You bet. Thanks for having me. It's great to have you, Commissioner. This week, the House of Representatives passed the Stop the CCP Act. As well, the Falun Gong Protection Act has passed the House unanimously and it was now waiting in the Senate. How significant is this and what more do you think Congress and those in power should be doing to really recognize China as not only the human rights abuser that it is, but also the threat? No, we have to focus on China. As a member of Congress, I was on the Armed Services Committee for 12 years and became very, very concerned about the rise of China and how they have strategic plans to become the world's superpower in a short amount of years. And the amount of money that they've invested in their military and the advances that they have made are very concerning in that China now has the largest Navy in the world, the largest army in the world, and they're advancing very quickly in the Air Force, in the space realm, the cyber realm. And so we have a lot to be concerned about. But then also they are one of the greatest abusers of human rights and religious freedom in the world. And that too is very, very concerning. And so I'm pleased to see Congress passing these bills, focusing on this because we have to speak up for those who can't speak up for themselves. And there are many people in China of sincere faith that are having their rights squelched, that are being imprisoned, that are being tortured, that are being killed. And those of us who have the privilege of living in a free society need to speak up for them. You're so right. You know, concerns have been brought up over the years and the decades at the United Nations, whether it be the human rights and the organ harvesting against the Falun Gong practitioners, the Uyghurs in Northwest China, the Tibetans in Western China, the house Christians throughout China, yet nothing really seems to happen. China doesn't budge. They have veto power because they're part of the Security Council at the UN. Why do you think this is happening and what really needs to be done to enact true change there? Well, it's very, very difficult. They are a large economic power as well in the world. Many countries have trade with them and that makes it a little more tricky in foreign policy. But the role of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, which I'm a member, is to be the watchdog for religious freedom around the world, to call out the abuses that are happening and to make recommendations to both the president and the Congress on what specific policies we can do in the United States to push back on that as part of our foreign policy. And we have recommended for years that China be a country of particular concern. That is the most severe designation that our country can do. And along with that gives a toolbox of actions that the president can take against them. And some of that could be economic sanctions. That could be military sanctions. It can be both carrot and stick approaches to try to get the country to abide by freedoms, basic freedoms for its citizens. Commissioner Vicky Hartzler, thank you so much for joining us. You bet. Thank you. The Chinese Communist Party is playing a hidden role in British universities and it's all happening inside campuses based inside China. That's according to a new report aimed at shedding light on the CCP's malign influence. More from NTD's international correspondent, Malcolm Hudson. A new report says that every British university with an outpost in China has a Chinese Communist Party branch within it. It says these are mandatory and run a shadow governance structure with significant influence over how the institute operates. The report published by the China Strategic Risks Institute investigated 45 Joint Educational Institutes or JEIs established by British universities in China. These campuses in China allow universities to boost their international profile as well as to tap into China's vast higher education market. There have been concerns that this influence impacts academic freedom with an academic removed from his post in 2018 after criticising the CCP. The report comes soon after the new UK government decided to pause the Higher Education Freedom of Speech Act. The act would have forced universities to actively promote freedom of expression on their China campuses. The British newspaper The Telegraph previously reported that university leaders pressured the government to drop the act to protect their financial partnerships with China. NTD reached out to universities investigated in the report. Cranfield University said they adhere to all current UK government guidance and regulation on collaborations with international institutions. The University of Leicester said they are proud of the impact and benefits that their work with China brings to both countries and say they take a joint approach to governance. And the University of Nottingham said they have never sought to conceal the role of the CCP in their China-based campus. They said the joint venture agreement ensures Nottingham University oversees all academic matters while their Chinese partners focus on administration such as student accommodation and catering. The report strongly recommends the UK government should amend rather than drop the Higher Education Freedom of Speech Act to protect academic freedoms against threats by authoritarian states. It also calls for immediate assessments of governance structures at the UK-China JEIs with a focus on protecting freedom of speech and preventing discrimination as per UK law. And it recommends a policy to protect whistleblowers to minimize the risks they could face should they want to speak up against authoritarian practices at the JEIs. Malcolm Hudson, NTD News. That's all for today's China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. If you have any feedback on the show or have something you'd like to see us cover, send us an email at chinainfocusntd.com. We'd love to hear from you. For around the clock original news coverage, visit us at ntd.com or download our NTD app. Coming up on NTD, stay tuned for America's Hope with Kelly Wright. Comedian Shonda Pierce brings her fierce wit and Southern charm to a conversation about her life and career. It's the subject of her new book, Life Is Funny Until It Isn't. Plus entrepreneur Jessica Fortune Barker discusses education generation Z on the importance of voting. Watch America's Hope with Kelly Wright tonight at 10 p.m. after China In Focus. Thanks for watching. See you tomorrow.