House GOP warns of China’s ‘rapid expansion’ in Indo-Pacific as Biden admin lays out vision for the region

EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans are warning that China’s “rapid expansion and militarization” of the Indo-Pacific is a “significant threat” to the United States and allies around the globe, while the Biden administration maintains it has made its concerns “clear” about Beijing’s “shadowy, unspecified deals” in the region. 

Republican Rep. Lance Gooden led Republican colleagues Nancy Mace, Ken Buck, Lisa McClain and Louie Gohmert in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, which was obtained by Fox News. It warned that if China is “left unchecked,” the U.S. and allies “will be unprepared and unable to respond to China’s presence in the region.”

“China’s rapid expansion and militarization of the Indo-Pacific region is a significant threat to the United States and our allies across the globe,” Gooden and his colleagues wrote. 

They noted that, in recent years, China “has used coercion and intimidation to demand policy changes, assert illegal maritime claims, and threaten countries that work with the United States or our allies.

BIDEN ATTENDING G7, NATO SUMMITS AMID ‘THE MOST SERIOUS SECURITY SITUATION IN DECADES’

“Beijing reaffirmed its intent to maintain high levels of defense spending to transform the People’s Liberation Army into a powerful force operating in and beyond the Indo-Pacific region,” they wrote. “If left unchecked, the United States and our allies will be unprepared and unable to respond to China’s presence in the region.”

One example Gooden pointed to was Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visiting several Indo-Pacific countries in recent weeks to “expand China’s military presence in the region” — specifically the Solomon Islands, which recently signed a security agreement with China allowing the PRC to “send military personnel and Chinese warships to utilize their ports for ‘logistical replenishment.’” 

“This agreement establishes a concerning precedent and could begin a domino effect destabilizing the entire region,” Gooden wrote.

Gooden and Republicans demanded Blinken “undertake all necessary measures to strengthen existing and foster new relationships in the strategic Indo-Pacific region to counter China’s growing influence.”

US CAN RELY ON WHAT CHINA DECRIES AS THE ‘ASIAN NATO’ FOR DETERRENCE, FORMER…