This resource tracked statements, developments, visits, and other interactions in US-Indo-Pacific relations under the President Trump administration. Special focus was given to the comments and activities of President Donald J. Trump; Vice President Mike Pence; United States Trade Representative Ambassador Robert E. Lighthizer; Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Jr.; former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson; former Secretary of Defense James Mattis; and former Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark Esper.
The Trump Administration & US - Indo-Pacific Relations
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USTR Lighthizer Issues Tariffs on Chinese Products in Response to Unfair Trade Practices
"'We must take strong defensive actions to protect America’s leadership in technology and innovation against the unprecedented threat posed by China’s theft of our intellectual property, the forced transfer of American technology, and its cyber attacks on our computer networks.China’s government is aggressively working to undermine America’s high-tech industries and our economic leadership through unfair trade practices and industrial policies like ‘Made in China 2025.’ Technology and innovation are America’s greatest economic assets and President Trump rightfully recognizes that if we want our country to…
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Secretary Pompeo's Press Availability with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang
"We also need to make some progress between our two countries on security. As Councilor Wang mentioned, I reaffirmed our concern with respect to China’s efforts to build a militarized outpost in the South China Sea, endangering the free flow of trade and threatening the sovereignty of other nations and undermining regional stability. I urged Councilor Wang and he confirmed China’s willingness to resolve these disputes in a peaceful way without resort to threats, coercion, or intimidation. I am confident that we can continue to…
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Remarks by Secretary Ross at the NTIA Spectrum Policy Symposium
"The U.S. wireless industry supports more than 4.7 million American jobs and contributes almost a half-a-trillion dollars — $475 billion — annually to the economy. But we cannot be complacent. While the United States leads the world in the application of 4G wireless technology, China and South Korea are trying hard to position themselves to dominate the next generation of 5G. China is shaping up to be the biggest 5G market by 2022, and the Chinese government has targeted 5G to develop its indigenous industry…
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Secretary Pompeo's Interview with Bingru Wang of Phoenix TV
"You mentioned trade in particular. President Trump is committed to rebalancing the trade relationship between the two countries. He has sent our Secretary of Treasury, our Secretary of Commerce. Chinese economic leaders have traveled to the United States to begin to work on how – what that might look like and how that change might take place. And so I am sure we’ll talk about that too, but my real mission there is to go do two things: one, to share with them how the…
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Secretary Ross Announces $1.4 Billion ZTE Settlement; ZTE Board, Management Changes and Strictest BIS Compliance Requirements Ever
"Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross today [June 7, 2018] announced that Zhongxing Telecommunications Equipment Corporation, of Shenzhen, China (“ZTE Corporation”) and ZTE Kangxun Telecommunications Ltd. of Hi-New Shenzhen, China (“ZTE Kangxun”) (collectively, “ZTE”) has agreed to severe additional penalties and compliance measures to replace the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) denial order imposed as a result of ZTE’s violations of its March 2017 settlement agreement. Under the new agreement, ZTE must pay $1 billion and place an additional $400 million in…
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Secretary Ross' Meetings with Chinese Officials
Over the weekend, Administration officials, led by Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, concluded a series of meetings in Beijing with a delegation from the government of China, as part of ongoing trade discussions. The meetings focused on reducing the United States’ trade deficit by facilitating the supply of agricultural and energy products to meet China’s growing consumption needs, which will help support growth and employment in the United States. The United States officials conveyed President Donald J. Trump’s clear goal for achieving a fair trading…
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Secretary Pompeo's Remarks on Anniversary of Tiananmen Square
"On the 29th anniversary of the violent suppression of peaceful demonstrations in and around Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989, we remember the tragic loss of innocent lives. As Liu Xiaobo wrote in his 2010 Nobel Peace Prize speech, delivered in absentia, “the ghosts of June 4th have not yet been laid to rest.” We join others in the international community in urging the Chinese government to make a full public accounting of those killed, detained or missing; to release those who have been jailed…
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Secretary Mattis Remarks at the Shangri-La Dialogue - China
"Yet China's policy in the South China Sea stands in stark contrast to the openness of our strategy. It promotes -- what our strategy promotes, it calls into question China's broader goals. China's militarization of artificial features in the South China Sea includes the deployment of anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missiles, electronic jammers, and more recently, the landing of bomber aircraft at Woody Island. Despite China's claims to the contrary, the placement of these weapons systems is tied directly to military use for the purposes of…
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Remarks by President Trump after Meeting with North Korean Vice Chairman Kim Yong Chol
"Well, what’s going to happen is South Korea will do that [offer North Korea economic aid]. No, I don’t think the United States is going to have to spend. I think South Korea will do it. I think China — I think, frankly, China will help out. I think that Japan will help out. No, I don’t see the United States spending a lot of money. You know, we have three hostages. How much money did I spend for the hostages? And, look, we’re very…