U.S. Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ) has stated that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is attempting to replace the international "rules-based" order by leveraging leadership positions within the United Nations (UN) to expand its influence. These comments were made during a congressional hearing on April 10.
"The CCP does not just seek to dominate the international rules-based order, it seeks to replace it,” said Smith. "Under Xi Jinping, the CCP has mastered the art of subverting the international rules-based order through its involvement at the UN—and I am deeply concerned that the Biden Administration is not taking sufficient action to stop it."
A hearing titled "The Chinese Communist Party’s Malign Influence at the United Nations—It’s Getting Worse," was chaired by Smith on April 10. The hearing featured testimonies from U.S. Ambassadors to the UN, Andrew Bremberg and Kelley Currie, according to a press release from Rep. Smith's office. Ambassador Bremberg said, "As the U.S. Ambassador to the UN in Geneva, I saw firsthand how China expands its influence, and actively bends international norms to fit Beijing’s malign interest, at times specifically challenging the Western international order established by the U.S. and our allies following World War II."
Smith further noted that he has observed the CCP actively using their positions of leadership to advocate for agreements which align with their world view. He said, "China has actively sought to place Chinese nationals in key positions within the UN system, including specialized agencies, to quietly change the status quo."
According to a report in The Times of India, a UN whistleblower alleged that China has attempted to influence votes at the UN in an effort to subvert international order. The whistleblower also claimed that China had tried to bribe two General Assembly presidents. British citizen Emma Reilly asserted in her written testimony that China tried to pressure the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) not raise certain issues such as origins of COVID-19 and treatment of Uyghurs in China.
Smith has been sanctioned by China for his advocacy against the CCP and voted against China's acceptance into the World Trade Organization (WTO), according to his press release. He described CCP as "an unelected, highly deceptive, and unimaginably cruel political entity—a dictatorship—that rules by force, torture and coercion and stands credibly accused of genocide and a plethora of human rights abuses."
Smith is currently serving his 22nd term as a U.S. Representative. He holds a senior position on the Foreign Affairs Committee, where he chairs the Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Subcommittee, according to his official website. He also serves as the Co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, Chairman of the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), and the "Special Representative" on Human Trafficking for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly.
