Two weeks ago, Beijing held a “Unlimited“Partnership. Just last week there were dangerous new reports that Russia, China and Iran are trying to disrupt next month’s UK elections.
It seems like barely a week goes by now that we see new evidence of how our adversaries and competitors are boldly conspiring to threaten the interests of the United States and its allies.
As Russia opens a new front in Ukraine, China and Iran continue to provide significant economic and military support to the country. China’s purchases of Iranian oil and gas fuel proxy wars across the Middle East, Iran continues to build weapons to kill Ukrainians and Americans, and Russia hosted Hamas leaders in the Kremlin just days after the October 7 terrorist attacks on Israel.
I have seen this growing relationship firsthand in my own travels, most recently when I visited South Africa as part of an Aspen Institute congressional delegation. As expected, I saw China’s outsized influence across the continent. Even more surprising were African military reports that Moscow’s economic investments are expanding rapidly, in step with what experts are seeing in Latin America and the Indo-Pacific region.
Domestically, researchers are connecting the dots that Russia is not only meddling in elections but also trying to influence foreign policy. For example, after the Maui fires last summer, a “Hawaii, not Ukraine” story first appeared from a newly created, suspicious account on X.
This type of tactic is becoming all too common: The story was amplified by Russia, spread across social media and eventually into mainstream media, creating foreign policy uncertainty among voters.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-Ohio) pointed out how these influence campaigns affect policymakers, saying, “We are seeing direct attempts from Russia to bury anti-Ukraine, pro-Russian messages, some of which we are hearing coming from the floor of the House of Representatives.”
Our adversaries have a clear goal: to undermine our interests at home and around the world. While the United States cannot control what Russia does, we can decide whether and how to engage on the international stage.
There are three areas where I believe Republican and Democratic policymakers can work together to protect our national security and economic interests, even in an election year.
First, when we think about national security spending, it’s not just defense. It also includes strengthening the civilian national security toolkit. In fact,National Security Emergency Funding PackageThe bill that Congress has now approved underscores how important supporting our allies and providing vital economic and humanitarian assistance is to protecting American interests.
The need for additional resources has become increasingly urgent in recent years as global threats have skyrocketed while core U.S. development and diplomacy budgets have remained flat. This mismatch between threats and resources has forced Congress to turn to emergency supplemental appropriations to fill the gap.
Unfortunately, the final FY24 spending deal included deep cuts to America’s core economic development assistance. Without Congressional reconciliation, today’s new challenges will become tomorrow’s urgent threats.
Second, we must heed the growing reality that economic security is national security. This includes increased engagement in economic policy, further leveraging U.S. diplomatic and economic tools, strengthening supply chains, strengthening export markets for emerging economies, leveraging technology and diplomacy, and ensuring that the United States sets the rules on issues ranging from trade to energy to artificial intelligence.
During a visit to Kenya last year, Ambassador Meg Whitman, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, reminded our delegation that by 2050, one in three of the world’s workers looking for their first job will be living in Africa. And our competitors are fighting to win. The next day, our delegation toured incredible economic development programs led by the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Development Finance Corporation that are enhancing opportunity in Kenya and here in the United States.
With China increasing its development investments around the world by 525 percent in the past 15 years alone, the United States cannot afford to take its foot off the gas.
Finally, global crises are reaching a fever pitch, with nearly 300 million people in need of humanitarian assistance, from Sudan to Gaza to Haiti. In addition to the human toll, the growing conflict and chaos caused by these crises is increasing instability and security risks, threatening global and American security.
That’s why I’m honored to join the hundreds of business, veteran, agriculture, and local elected leaders gathered on Capitol Hill this week in speaking out about the imperative for America to engage in the world — because there have rarely been moments when global stability affects American stability.
The good news is that America has the diplomatic and developmental tools to respond to this situation. The question is whether America will confront these threats on the scale required, because pay now or pay later is a fact of life.
My longtime friend, General James Mattis, was the firstHe told parliamentMore than a decade ago, he said, “If we don’t give the State Department enough money, we have to buy more ammunition.”
His words have never rang more true than they do today.
Liz Schreyer is president and CEO of the U.S. Coalition for Global Leadership.
