Commerce Sec’y Raimondo: China Should Have ‘Good’ Economy, We’ll Talk So Military Bolstered by Economy Isn’t Used

On Thursday’s broadcast of CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo stated that China should have “a good economy” and responded to concerns that a strong Chinese economy would give the country more resources to devote to their military by stating that “it’s deeply in our interest to communicate with them and have direct dialogue, because it reduces the risk of miscalculation, misassessment, and kind of a downward, inexporable spiral to greater tension and conflict.”

Raimondo said, “[T]he Chinese people deserve a good economy and prosperity. We have no interest to hold China down, to hold China back, to hold the people down. We have an interest to protect our national security, first and foremost. China’s military fusion strategies, very troubling. We have an interest to have a level playing field so that our companies and workers can compete. So, that was my message. And I think that message was well received. A few people commented that they had not heard that before from a U.S. official recently on the ground in China.”

Co-host Sara Eisen then asked, “Because, isn’t the problem, though, that if China’s economy is strong, they have more resources to devote to their military, which we don’t want?”

Raimondo answered, “That is true, we don’t want that. Their military capacity, if used against us, is a huge problem, which is why, Sara, to your first point, this is a complex relationship. It’s — they are — we are in a fierce competition with them along many fronts, but it is in our interest to manage that relationship. And it’s deeply in our interest to communicate with them and have direct dialogue, because it reduces the risk of miscalculation, misassessment, and kind of a downward, inexporable spiral to greater tension and conflict.”

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