Beijing has threatened commerce with some international locations after feuds. They’re calling ‘the agency’ for assist

It emerged within the scramble to assist Lithuania throughout a spat with China over Taiwan two years in the past.

At this time, “the agency” helps rising numbers of countries deal with what diplomats name financial coercion from Beijing.

International locations “knock on the door, they name,” Undersecretary of State Jose Fernandez informed The Related Press in a latest interview.

“We run a consulting agency that doesn’t should promote for purchasers, as they arrive,” she mentioned.

Led by State Division senior adviser Melanie Hart, the group opinions vulnerabilities and develops responses for international locations which can be minimize off or concern shedding commerce with international powerhouse China.

Because the group’s launch with Lithuania, greater than a dozen international locations have approached the Biden administration for help, Fernandez mentioned.

The trouble comes as Washington is stepping up its marketing campaign to push again at China’s international affect and tensions develop between the rivals.

The Chinese language Embassy in Washington took challenge with the notion that Beijing is utilizing financial strain on different international locations, calling it “fully unfounded”.

The US, it mentioned, was the one bullying China economically by abusing export controls, treating Chinese language firms unfairly and labelling Beijing as a perpetrator of financial coercion.

“They imagine that intimidation works. That’s why we acquired into the act. The time had come to cease this factor.” he mentioned.

Two years later, China rejected banana imports from the Philippines over a territorial dispute within the South China Sea.

In late 2021 and early 2022, Lithuanian companies noticed their cargo shipments to and from China stranded, they usually have been warned by main European companies that Lithuanian-made auto elements can be barred from merchandise for the Chinese language market.

That got here after Lithuania allowed Taiwan’s de-facto embassy in Vilnius to bear the title Taiwan, as a substitute of Taipei — Taiwan’s capital metropolis — as most popular by Beijing.

China considers the self-governed island to be a part of Chinese language territory and protested the usage of Taiwan.

As an alternative of caving in, the northern European nation requested for assist.

The US and its allies stepped up.

American diplomats sought new markets for Lithuanian items.

The Export-Import Financial institution in Washington offered Vilnius with $600 million in export credit score, and the Pentagon signed a procurement settlement with the nation.

And “the agency” saved at it.

The State Division works as the primary line of response and may coordinate with different US companies to achieve “each software that the US authorities has,” based on a division official who requested to not be named to debate particulars of the crew.

Whereas it takes years to reorient international provide chains to cut back reliance on international locations similar to China, the crew tries to supply a faster technique to ease a disaster, the official mentioned, evaluating the crew to ambulance providers that “enable you get previous that scary emergency time”.

For instance, the US may attempt to work with companions to assist a rustic rapidly divert agricultural merchandise to new markets, construct extra chilly storage so merchandise can attain farther markets or enhance product high quality to realize entry into extra markets, the official mentioned.

The help is confidential, the official mentioned, declining to debate the instruments on the crew’s disposal or title the international locations which have sought assist.

Shay Wester, director of Asian financial affairs on the Asia Society Coverage Institute, mentioned it was “a major and much-needed initiative”.

“China’s rising use of financial coercion to strain international locations over political disputes is a major problem that requires a concerted response,” mentioned Wester, who co-authored an April report on the difficulty.

The responses from different international locations present that demand is excessive for this type of assist, Wester mentioned.

This month, Lithuania hosted a convention on resisting financial strain, and Overseas Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis mentioned the goal of that motion “is to crush the victims by forcing reversal and public renunciation of its insurance policies”.

Liu Pengyu, the Chinese language Embassy spokesman, mentioned the issue with Lithuania was “a political not an financial one”.

“They have been brought on by Lithuania’s acts in unhealthy religion that harm China’s pursuits, not China’s strain on Lithuania,” he mentioned.

Fernandez, who attended the convention, applauded Lithuania for standing as much as China.

“Lithuania gave us the chance to show that there have been alternate options to the coercion,” he mentioned.