In a House Foreign Affairs Committee markup of the Ensuring American Global Leadership and Engagement Act, or the EAGLE Act, U.S. Congressman Brian Mast (FL-18) offered amendments designed to hold the People’s Republic of China (PRC) accountable on the global stage and to ensure that the United States is able to counter its influence.
“Obstruction of investigations on coronavirus, theft of intellectual property, blatant human rights abuses – the list of China’s offenses goes on and on. But the bottom line is this: China is the greatest security threat, not just to the U.S., but to democracy, independence, and the world as we know it,” Mast said. “It is up to us to stop them, but this bill will not cut it.”
The amendments offered by Congressman Mast would:
- Declassify intelligence gathered by the U.S. related to the origins of the coronavirus, including information about the Wuhan Institute of Virology, activities conducted by the Chinese military at the Institute, coronavirus research and related activities at the Institute, and details surrounding the illness of several researchers in the fall of 2019;
- Direct the Secretary of State and the U.S. Trade Representatives to develop a strategy to prevent China, and other nations, from falsely claiming “developing nation” status, which gives the nation preferential treatment in trade agreements intended to benefit truly developing nations;
- Prohibit the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from providing grants or other financial resources to any individual or entity in order to conduct research in China, Russia, Iran, or North Korea;
