Today, the United States faces a dual economic and security threat from the emergence of strategic competitors on the global stage. While the U.S. has traditionally been the global leader in foreign aid and development assistance, the emergence of China and its state-run development initiatives aim to serve as an alternative to the United States. China’s Belt and Road Initiative seeks to leverage its soft power across the developing world, as an economic and technological challenge to long standing investments by the United States. With these efforts, China intends to export its state-capitalism and invasive surveillance system to friendly, authoritarian-adjacent world leaders to create a new world order that prioritizes its interests. On the other hand, Russia actively seeks to undermine U.S. democratic institutions through election interference and the proliferation of anti-U.S. and democratic propaganda. Under Putin’s control, Russia has flagrantly disregarded international norms with the illegal annexation of Crimea and funding of Ukrainian separatists. Still reeling from four years of damage to the traditional U.S. partnerships and alliances, the U.S. must now grapple with how to reestablish its influence and credibility. This panel will explore how the U.S. can better utilize its bilateral and multilateral aid apparatus to counter efforts by China and Russia to garner support from developing countries, as well as how the U.S. can live up to President Biden’s insistence that “America is back.”
Panelists:
Andrew Natsios
Executive Professor at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University
Linda Etim
Special Assistant to President & Senior Director for Development and Global Health, National Security Council
Vincent Rigby
Former national security and intelligence advisor to the prime minister of Canada
Moderator:
Conor Savoy
Senior Fellow, CSIS PPD