FBI: China is a real threat to U.S. security.

During a hearing on October 10th before senators on the House Homeland Security Committee, FBI Director Christopher, when comparing the dangers posed by Russia and China to the United States, stated: "Russia is struggling in many ways to survive after the collapse of the Soviet Union. That country is fighting the war of today. China is fighting the war of tomorrow."

US Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen stated that China is making unprecedented efforts to influence American public opinion. However, Nielsen acknowledged that US agencies "have not observed any attempts by China to undermine US election infrastructure."

FBI Director Christopher Wray. Photo: Getty Images

Recommendations for the Trump administration

Senators on the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee held the hearing to clarify Vice President Mike Pence's statement last week, in which he said that Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election was "not as dangerous" as China's interference campaign against the United States.

The US Congressional Executive Commission on China (CECC) also recently released its annual report amid escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing, affirming that a commitment to the rule of law is "the foundation for cooperative alliances and security partnerships, for multilateral exchanges, and for free trade and investment."

"Any effort to reconsider the U.S. administration's approach to China should emphasize adherence to international standards and comparable U.S. economic and security interests," SCMPciting the CECC report.

The CECC was established in 2000 with the mission of conducting public hearings and providing annual reports to Congress and the US president on issues related to China. The agency is currently headed by Republican Senator Marco Rubio.

The CECC report recommends that the Trump administration continue to pressure Beijing to end China's "harmful policies" that are damaging U.S. trade.

"The relationship between China and the United States is very strained in many areas," Republican Senator Chris Smith stated at a CECC press briefing on October 10, implicitly referring to the trade war between the two countries and tensions in the South China Sea. However, he suggested that some parts of the Chinese government are showing signs of being willing to normalize the relationship.

The US-China trade war is becoming increasingly tense. (Illustrative image)

China is a strategic competitor of the United States.

Speaking on October 4th, Vice President Mike Pence reiterated President Donald Trump's earlier accusation that China is seeking to interfere in the US midterm elections. Observers have repeatedly raised this concern, but Beijing has strongly denied it.

Pence also criticized China for its militarization of the South China Sea, accusing Beijing of luring three Latin American nations to sever ties with Taiwan and pursuing a policy of "debt trap diplomacy" to expand its influence.

However, the US vice president did not offer any plan outlining Washington's approach to these issues.

"This is the first U.S. administration to explicitly state that China is a strategic competitor in a national security and military strategy document released last year," David Shambaugh, a China scholar at George Washington University, told the South China Morning Post in an interview.

"Former President George W. Bush called China a strategic competitor during his campaign, but once he became president, he didn't use that phrase anymore. America is competing with China in almost every area instead of cooperating, but we will still cooperate whenever possible," Shambaugh said, referring to the issue of North Korea and security in the Western Pacific.

During his recent visit to New York, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi asserted that the U.S. had made a "serious misjudgment" in accusing Beijing of intending to usurp Washington's position and aspiring to global dominance. Wang warned that Washington's distrust could harm U.S. interests in the future.