China Caucus Newsletter
February 2008

Forbes Makes Statement on Department of Justice Arrests Made in Chinese Spy Sweep

Chairman and Founder of the Congressional China Caucus, Rep. Randy Forbes, released the following statement in response to the Department of Justice's arrest of four individuals on espionage charges related to China:

“Today’s arrests put faces on what is a real and immediate national peril: China poses the number one espionage threat to the United States, and the effects of that threat are real and dangerous to the interests of the United States. China is particularly concerning to me because of the deliberate and methodical methods of espionage practiced by trained spies, students, and civilians. Whether stealing Defense Department secrets or intellectual capital, the Chinese are gaining sensitive information about the United States every day. We cannot allow this to continue.

“The United States needs to be prepared for the threats of tomorrow, not yesterday. We need to take steps to update our espionage laws, and recognize the spies of today do not always use the same tools that spies used during the Cold War.

“If we don’t take action, I am wholly confidant that the Chinese will continue to steal the very ideas that make the United States competitive and secure.”

Congressman Forbes recently requested a hearing in the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Homeland Security, and Terrorism on the threat of espionage, particularly from China, that was held on January 29, 2008. To learn more about the hearing,  click here.

To read an article on the arrests from the Washington Times, click here.

Event to Check Up on Pollution & the 2008 Olympic Games a Success

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) hosted an event on February 6, 2008 titled "Health Checkup for Beijing: Pollution and the Olympics" to address environmental concerns surrounding the preparation for the Beijing Games. The event was co-hosted by the Congressional China Caucus.

With less than seven months until the 2008 Olympic Games in China, there has been widespread and increasing concern over Beijing's variable air quality leading up to the Beijing Games. The Honorable James L. Connaughton, Chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, along with other expert guests, discussed Beijing's ability to fulfill its promise to deliver a "Green Olympics" and other various environmental challenges that Beijing organizers face.

Photo: A panel of experts is introduced at the "Health Checkup for Beijing Pollution and the Olympics" event.

Forbes and Bordallo Meet with Taiwan Ambassador

Co-chairmen of the Congressional China Caucus, Rep. Randy Forbes and Rep. Madeleine Bordallo, recently attended a dinner with the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative in the United States, Joseph Wu. The members discussed the current economic and political situation in Taiwan, including the upcoming presidential election and referendum on March 20, 2008. 

Upcoming China Events

Hearing: China’s Views of Sovereignty and Methods of Access Control
February 27, 2008
562 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C.

An agenda for the hearing will be posted on the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission's Web site as soon as it is available. Commissioners Mark T. Esper and Jeffrey Fiedler will attend.

Hearing: China’s Regional Economic and Security Impacts
March 18 - 19, 2008
Location TBD
Washington, D.C.

Vice Chairman of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission Carolyn Bartholomew and Commissioner Daniel Blumenthal will attend the hearing. An agenda will be posted on the Commission's Web site as soon as it becomes available.

Recent China Events

U.S.-China Space Relations
Hosted by the New American Foundation
February 12, 2008

The New American Foundation sponsored an event titled "Space Race With China? - The Chinese Anti-Satellite Test and U.S. China Relations." Click here for information on topics discussed at the event.

Putting Pressure on China to Act on Darfur
February 12, 2008
H-137 Capitol Building

Members of Congress, activists and Olympic athletes held a news conference to urge China to hasten an end to the ongoing violence and humanitarian crisis in Darfur by pressuring Sudan.

Hearing: The Implications of Sovereign Wealth Fund Investments for National Security
Thursday, February 7, 2008

562 Dirksen Senate Office Building
8:30 am. – 5 p.m.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission conducted a public hearing on Thursday, February 7, 2008 on “The Implications of Sovereign Wealth Fund Investments for  National Security.” The hearing was being conducted to obtain testimony about how China is using its Sovereign Wealth Fund and, more particularly, how its use by China to make investments in the United States may affect U.S. economic and national security. The Commission heard from experts on the topic.  Senators and Representatives and Administration officials also were  invited to testify.

China In The News

The New Space Race: China vs. the U.S.
Time
February 13, 2008
Both the U.S. and China have announced intentions of returning humans to the moon by 2020 at the earliest. And the two countries are already in the early stages of a new space race that appears to have some of the heat and skullduggery of the one between Washington and Moscow during the Cold War, when space was a proxy battleground for geopolitical dominance. Click here to read more.

China dissident faces trial after blasting Olympics
Reuters

February 13, 2008
A Chinese activist will stand trial for subversion after he called for human rights instead of the Beijing Olympic Games, highlighting the Communist Party's quest to strengthen its control ahead of the showcase event. Click here to read more.

Four Are Charged in Espionage Cases Tied to China
The Wall Street Journal
February 12, 2008
The Justice Department unveiled charges against a U.S. military analyst and a former Boeing Co. engineer in separate cases that officials said underscore intense economic and military espionage efforts by China in the U.S. Click here to read more.

Hasbro sees cost of China-made toys rising: report
Reuters
February 12, 2008
Hasbro Inc (HAS.N), the second-largest U.S. toy company, expects a 14 percent to 15 percent increase this year in the costs of made-in-China products due to higher labor, commodity and currency costs, according to a story on the Financial Times Web site. Click here to read more.

Music Companies Sue Baidu, Sohu To Counter Online Piracy in China
Associated Press
February 7, 2008
Music companies have started a new fight with China's Internet industry over piracy, filing lawsuits accusing popular Web sites Baidu.com and Sohu.com of aiding illicit online copying, an industry group said yesterday.  Click here to read more.
 

Editorial: Whether at home or abroad, China is silent on matters of democracy
International Herald Tribune
February 7, 2008
For months, as the Beijing Olympics draw nearer, China has been refining its arguments in favor of disassociating the Games from politics. This effort reached something of a rhetorical crescendo last week with an editorial in The People's Daily. "Those who want to use the Olympics to discredit China, and those who think the Olympics will promote China to change in the way they hope, are doomed to be disappointed," the column said. "Their efforts will be futile." Click here to read more.

China's Forecast Remains Grim
February 4, 2008
Time
China's winter storm crisis is now more than two weeks old, and despite a nationwide mobilization and a "war on snow havoc," as state-run media called it, serious problems remain. In some hard-hit interior provinces, residents have now been without power for more than a week. The transportation woes that left hundreds of thousands of migrant workers stranded ahead of the Chinese New Year Holiday have gradually improved, but not quickly enough for people's expectations.  Click here to read more.

To read more news clips on China, click here.

Contact Us

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The primary purpose of the Congressional China Caucus is to educate its members on issues pertaining to China and Chinese interests and serve as a forum for discussion of such issues. The Congressional China Caucus will investigate China’s global reach and the consequences of its growing international, economic, and political influence on U.S. interests.

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