US to launch G-7 global infrastructure push to counter China
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WASHINGTON • US President Joe Biden will launch a global infrastructure initiative to counter China's international ambitions, particularly in the Indo-Pacific.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday said the announcement will be made at the Group of Seven (G-7) summit of industrialised nations from June 26 to 28 in Germany.
The partnership initiated by the United States will cover global infrastructure, physical health and digital infrastructure and will provide "an alternative to what the Chinese are offering", ultimately with hundreds of billions of dollars in investment between the US and its G-7 partners, Mr Sullivan said at an event hosted by the Centre for a New American Security.
"We intend for this to be one of the hallmarks of the Biden administration foreign policy over the remainder of his tenure," Mr Sullivan said.
The effort will rely on private-sector funding and "relatively modest direct budget allocations" from the US government, he added.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Friday at a regular press briefing that while Beijing welcomed efforts to promote global infrastructure development, Mr Biden's initiative was based on a "zero-sum game approach".
"The relevant initiative from the US side ignores the desire of all countries for common development and win-win cooperation," Mr Wong said. He noted that any construction plans for global infrastructure required all countries to cooperate, support and complement one another, rather than confront and replace others.
"What the world needs is to build bridges, not to tear them down; to connect, not to decouple and build walls," he said.
"Any attempt to advance geopolitics in the name of infrastructure development is unpopular and will not succeed," he added.
Ties between China and the US remain tense, with the world's two largest economies clashing over everything from Taiwan to China's human rights record.
Mr Sullivan last Monday met China's top diplomat Yang Jiechi in Luxembourg, and urged that Washington and Beijing keep lines of communication open to manage their competition.
Meanwhile, Mr Biden yesterday said he was in the process of making up his mind on easing US tariffs on China and planned to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping soon.
BLOOMBERG, REUTERS
