Trump’s State Dept pick Rubio vows to confront ‘dangerous’ China, deter Taiwan invasion
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Senator Marco Rubio is expected to easily secure confirmation as secretary of state in the incoming Trump administration.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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WASHINGTON - Mr Marco Rubio, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, said on Jan 15 that a “dangerous” China cheated its way to superpower status as he vowed to ramp up support to deter an invasion of Taiwan.
Mr Rubio laid out his world view to fellow senators at a confirmation hearing that took place just as Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire
Mr Rubio, who is expected to secure confirmation easily, described China as “the most potent and dangerous near-peer adversary this nation has ever faced” and warned of drastic impact if the US does not act.
“If we stay on the road we’re on right now, in less than 10 years, virtually everything that matters to us in life will depend on whether China will allow us to have it or not – everything from the blood pressure medicine we take to what movies we get to watch,” he said.
He vowed to ramp up defences of Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island claimed by Beijing, to prevent a “cataclysmic military intervention”.
“We need to wrap our head around the fact that unless something dramatic changes, like an equilibrium (between China and Taiwan), where they conclude that the costs of intervening in Taiwan are too high, we’re going to have to deal with this before the end of this decade,” Mr Rubio said.
No ‘primary’ role in Nato?
Trump had, during his campaign, raised questions over Taiwan by insisting it does not pay enough for its own defence – similar criticism he has made of Nato allies.
Mr Rubio distanced himself from talk of exiting Nato but said the US needed to ask whether to retain “the primary defence role” in the alliance or be a “backstop to aggression”, with Europeans taking more responsibility.
A staunch backer of Ukraine after its invasion by Russia nearly three years ago, Mr Rubio has allied with Trump in promising “bold diplomacy”
“This war has to end, and I think it should be the official policy of the United States that we want to see it end,” Mr Rubio said, a shift from Mr Biden’s approach of supporting Ukraine through victory.
Mr Rubio also backed the diplomacy that reached the Gaza ceasefire but made clear that he will staunchly back Israel, after Mr Biden’s occasional criticism of the toll to civilians.
“How can any nation-state on the planet coexist side by side with a group of savages like Hamas?” Mr Rubio said.
Denouncing ‘liberal world order’
Mr Rubio rejected a key tenet of Mr Biden’s foreign policy – prioritising a rules-based, US-led “liberal world order” – in favour of Trump’s belief in “America First”.
“The post-war global order is not just obsolete; it is now a weapon being used against us,” Mr Rubio said.
“We welcomed the Chinese Communist Party into this global order. And they took advantage of all its benefits. But they ignored all its obligations and responsibilities,” he said. “Instead, they have lied, cheated, hacked and stolen their way to global superpower status, at our expense.”
Mr Rubio, the son of working-class Cuban immigrants, would become the first Hispanic and first fluent Spanish speaker to be the top US diplomat.
Well-liked by his colleagues, Mr Rubio is one of the least contentious of Trump’s array of nominees. Democratic Senator Cory Booker addressed him as “Marco” and called him a “thought leader” before complimenting him on his sports knowledge.
A traditional Republican hawk, Mr Rubio clashed bitterly with Trump – who mocked him as “Little Marco” – in the 2016 presidential nomination race, but Mr Rubio has since come into the fold.
Other nominees in Senate hearings on Jan 15 included Ms Pam Bondi, tapped for the top law enforcement job of attorney-general.
Trump named her after his first choice, Mr Matt Gaetz, withdrew following allegations that he had paid for sex, including with an underage girl, at drug-fuelled parties.
Ms Bondi received a polite reception from senators.
She said she was open to supporting pardons on a “case-by-case basis” for some convicted over the 2021 riot at the US Capitol by a pro-Trump mob but said she would “condemn any violence” against law enforcement. AFP
