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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Secretary Pompeo With Sean Hannity of The Sean Hannity Show - China and North Korea
"QUESTION: Here with a lot more on this and so much more, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Mr. Secretary, great to see you. Thank you for being with us. You actually brought in Chinese representatives to your office on this very topic of blaming the U.S. military and other issues. Can you bring us inside that conversation?
SECRETARY POMPEO: Well, Sean, thanks for having me on tonight. We did, in fact, call on the Chinese ambassador, and I spoke to my counterpart in China a…
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Secretary Michael R. Pompeo Remarks to the Press - China
"QUESTION: [...] And then separately, a note that went out yesterday from the State Department saying that China is spreading information about the origins of coronavirus – in light of that, do you believe that China’s containment has been as successful as officials there say? And then do you believe that China is honestly reporting its infection numbers? [...]SECRETARY POMPEO: Your question about China – look, the disinformation campaign that they are waging is designed to shift responsibility. Now is not the time for recrimination…
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President Trump's Remarks on China During Press Briefing
"Q And given that many of the precursors for our pharmaceuticals come from China, and there have been disrupt- — there have been supply disruptions — that supply chain has been broken to some degree — do you expect that we could run into a shortage of prescription drugs?
THE PRESIDENT: No, I don’t see that at all. And I think China has every incentive to make sure that things work well. China wants to make sure that things work very well. They have every…
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Secretary Pompeo’s Call with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar
"Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo and Indian Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar spoke March 14 to discuss COVID-19 developments, including ways in which India and the United States can cooperate to address this global challenge."
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Secretary Pompeo’s Remarks to the Press - China
"On Monday, our USAID announced $37 million in financing allocated for countries affected or at high risk of the Wuhan virus’s spread. That comes on top of the $100 million in humanitarian assistance and delivery of more than 17 tons of assistance that the United States has sent to the Chinese people back in January. [...]
Turning to China: Last week we applied a personnel cap on five Chinese state-backed propaganda outlets here in the United States. We took this action in service of President Trump’s…
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Readout of Secretary Esper’s Telephone Call with the People’s Republic of China’s Minister of National Defense General Wei Fenghe
"Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper spoke by phone with the People’s Republic of China Minister of National Defense General Wei Fenghe on March 3, 2020. Secretary Esper used the call to advance a constructive, stable, and results-oriented defense relationship between the United States and China.
Dr. Esper shared with Minister Wei recent developments towards achieving sustainable peace in Afghanistan and the importance of the United States and China continuing cooperation and dialogue to advance shared interests of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
Secretary…
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Remarks by President Trump in Press Conference - Various Issues in the Indo-Pacific
"THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Please. So we had a couple of really great days in India. Prime Minister Modi is a terrific man. He’s a terrific leader. And we have a lot of things going in terms of product being purchased by India.
We just had a meeting. A lot of the press was there. I thought it was a great meeting with some of the biggest businessmen in the world. They come from India. They’re agreeing to invest billions and billions of…
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Secretary Michael R. Pompeo Remarks to the Press - China
Outside of our borders, the State Department continues to do an enormous amount of work to review developments inside and outside of China, and to help countries who have been stricken by the virus.
We also want to applaud the brave reporters who are covering the spread of coronavirus from Wuhan itself. Expelling our journalists exposes, once again, the governance issue that led to SARS, and now, the coronavirus, namely censorship. It can have deadly consequences. Had China permitted its own and foreign journalists and…
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Secretary Esper's Remarks at the Munich Security Conference - China
"Being in Europe, I know that there has been much discussion about the challenges from Russia, so this morning I want to focus on the Pentagon’s top concern: the People’s Republic of China.
Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of a decision that fundamentally altered the course of international affairs: China’s admission into the World Trade Organization.
I was working in the United States Senate at the time, and two competing arguments over China’s membership dominated the public debate.
The prevailing…
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Secretary Pompeo’s Meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Republic of Korea Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha
"Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo met today with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Republic of Korea Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha in a trilateral meeting on the margins of the Munich Security Conference. Secretary Pompeo, Foreign Minister Kang, and Foreign Minister Motegi reaffirmed close cooperation on the DPRK and discussed a coordinated response to the coronavirus outbreak and other global security concerns. They also emphasized the importance of the U.S.-ROK and U.S.-Japan Alliances to security and prosperity as a key part of the Indo-Pacific…
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Secretary Pompeo With Lou Dobbs of Lou Dobbs Tonight - China
"QUESTION: I have the feeling, the strong feeling, that you and the President are taking the country to a level of consciousness that we had not anticipated perhaps for many years. Many of us had hoped we would get there, but you’re actually taking us there, warning of the implications of a highly sophisticated China that is expansionary and is insinuating itself into the very fabric of our society and our nation.
SECRETARY POMPEO: Yes, sir. It’s been too long. We’ve allowed this to continue…