The US House Select Committee on China and the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance of China (IPAC) in a joint statement on Friday warned against divisions among global democracies amid a “generational challenge” posed by China.
The statement was issued following a roundtable discussion covering a range of issues, including support for Taiwan.
“In the face of rising authoritarianism, division among democracies is not an option,” the statement said. “We are committed to deepening our coordination across the Atlantic and beyond — to protect our shared values, strengthen collective resilience and ensure the free world stands united in defending a peaceful, rules-based international order.”
Photo: AFP
The IPAC is an international coalition founded in 2020 by lawmakers around the world to address the threat of Chinese expansionism. The group includes legislators from more than 200 countries, including Taiwan, the US, Japan, Australia, India and European nations.
The delegates gathered at the US Congress in Washington discussed matters concerning authoritarian aggression, global trade and security, and support for Taiwan, which the statement said was “a beacon of democracy and critical partner of the US.”
US representatives John Moolenaar, chairman of the committee and an IPAC cochair, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, the committee’s ranking member and an IPAC member, led the IPAC discussions, the committee said.
“The Chinese Communist Party [CCP] is working overtime to divide democracies and exploit the gaps between us,” Moolenaar said in the statement. “By coming together across the Atlantic, we are strengthening our shared resolve to defend democratic values, protect our institutions and ensure that free nations — not authoritarian regimes — set the rules of the road for the 21st century.”
“Authoritarian aggression thrives when democracies are divided,” said Dutch Member of Parliament Jan Paternotte, another IPAC cochair. “This joint commitment shows that transatlantic lawmakers are united in defending freedom and resisting CCP influence.”
The committee and IPAC said in the statement that they affirm a shared commitment to boosting cooperation between democracies to counter China’s bid to reshape the global order on its terms.
“The CCP is conducting a coordinated campaign to undermine democratic institutions, pressure open societies, and coerce economies through foreign interference, strategic investment and military aggression,” they said.
China’s actions in the Taiwan Strait and the broader Indo-Pacific region, its support of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and subversion of international organizations “reflect a deliberate effort to chip away at the norms that have underpinned global stability for decades,” they said.
Democracies around the globe must bolster their solidarity to confront the threat emanating from Beijing, they said.
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