WASHINGTON:A bipartisan group of US senators has introduced legislation aimed at strengthening Washington's ability to counter what they describe as the People's Republic of China's "grey-zone" tactics in the Indo-Pacific, arguing that Beijing's coercive activities threaten regional stability, US national security and key allies across the region.
The legislation, introduced on Wednesday (local time) by Senators Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois, and Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee, seeks to enhance cooperation between the US State Department and Indo-Pacific partners to better monitor, deter and respond to China's activities that fall short of open military conflict.
"Increasing PRC aggression in the Indo-Pacific doesn't just impact our partners in the region -- it threatens America's economic and national security," Duckworth said while announcing the bipartisan measure.
"We are a Pacific nation, and we depend on a free and open Indo-Pacific. As the PRC works to undermine regional stability through its grey-zone tactics, our bipartisan bill would help ensure the US better coordinates with our partners and deters these efforts that pose a real threat to our security," she added.
According to the senators, "grey-zone tactics" include actions designed to undermine stability without triggering conventional armed conflict. The press release cites cyberattacks, economic coercion and information warfare among the methods employed by China.
"Communist China is constantly devising ways to evade detection and act maliciously towards our allies through cyberattacks, economic coercion, information warfare, and other 'grey-zone' tactics that undermine the US and our allies without using open military conflict," Blackburn said.
"This legislation would strengthen our ability to counter the CCP's malign geopolitical interests and its increasingly aggressive tactics in the Indo-Pacific," she added.
Under the bill, the Secretary of State would be required to submit a strategy to improve monitoring of Chinese behaviour in the Indo-Pacific and identify government branches, programmes and actors that can strengthen oversight.
The legislation also calls for a task force to track, formulate and strengthen tools to counter and mitigate Chinese grey-zone operations. The task force would evaluate progress through performance indicators and report its findings to Congress.
In addition, the State Department would be instructed to identify new areas of collaboration with Indo-Pacific allies, partners and private stakeholders to strengthen collective capabilities to deter Chinese coercion. The senators said the effort is intended to advance US national interests, protect the global economy and improve regional security.
The announcement also highlighted Duckworth's broader legislative efforts on Indo-Pacific security. Her office said she has sponsored measures including the Strategy for Crisis Management Act and the South China Sea Strategy Act, both of which have cleared committee and await consideration by the full Senate.
The release further noted that provisions backed by Duckworth in this year's National Defence Authorisation Act are intended to improve crisis management, cooperation with Indo-Pacific partners, asymmetric operations and medical preparedness across the region.
India has emerged as an increasingly important partner in the US Indo-Pacific strategy through frameworks such as the Quad, which also includes Japan and Australia.
New Delhi and Washington have expanded defence cooperation, intelligence sharing and maritime coordination in recent years, while both governments have repeatedly stressed the importance of a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific.
--IANS
