IV. Counter Economic Aggression and Malign Political Influence
External actors have increased political and economic influence in the Western Hemisphere through state-driven trade, investment, diplomatic, technology, media, security, and health outreach. Examples include the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) aggressive efforts to expand market share, notably in 5G infrastructure, for Huawei and other state-affiliated technology firms; export surveillance and censorship tools; and increase the region’s dependence on debt financing and commodities exports at the expense of sovereignty, fiscal prudence, economic diversification, and local markets. Such activities empower corruption, weaken intellectual property protections, exploit cyber vulnerabilities, unfairly disadvantage United States and host nation businesses, harm the environment, and pressure nations to adopt policies inconsistent with democratic values and the long-term interests of their own people. We will actively encourage our partners to incorporate due diligence and transparency requirements in foreign financing and investment.
