Luetkemeyer Presses Yellen On Potential Taiwan Invasion: 'I Think We Need To Have A Plan In Place'

4 months ago

On Tuesday, Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO) questioned Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen on the potential of China invading Taiwan during a House Financial Services Committee hearing.

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Transcript

00:00myself for five minutes. Welcome, Ms. Yellen. Good to see you again today. We've discussed

00:07this issue in the past. You know, my concern initially was a very slow response with regards

00:13to sanctions that were put on all the things that could be helpful to Russia whenever they

00:17invaded Ukraine. And so I ask you in the last couple of times you've been here, in your

00:24position as head of FSOC, is there a committee or a group that's being put together to be

00:30able to have sanctions immediately ready to put on China when China invades Taiwan? Our

00:36own generals say it's going to happen over the next three years. So therefore, I think

00:39we need to have a plan in place so it doesn't take several months like it did with Russia.

00:44Because I think in order for us to be impactful, we've got to do this very quickly. So you've

00:47indicated last time you were here that there is a committee that's working on this. Would

00:51you like to discuss it a little bit more? Sorry, there are inter-agency discussions

00:58around Taiwan. Those discussions include working with our allies to be able to identify different

01:07entities, different groups to be able to sanction and make it more difficult for China to economically

01:14continue once they invade and we put sanctions on them. I'm sorry, I'm not really able to

01:21discuss. I don't want specifics, I just want generality, so I understand. But I think it's

01:26important for us to know as a committee, to provide our oversight, that there is a concern

01:30about this, number one. And number two, that there are discussions going on and they include

01:34allies to be able to address this issue when and if it occurs. We have many discussions

01:41about common issues with our allies and I would include this in that list. But I'm not

01:50able to provide the specifics. Okay, I understand that. Thank you very much. Next question is

01:55a little bit different. What's your greatest concern when it comes to foreign finance issues

02:01like this? When it comes to what? With foreign finance. We're talking about foreign financial

02:05institutions and different issues today with regards to international financial system.

02:10What's your greatest concern about all of this? About foreign financial institutions?

02:14Yeah, things that you're involved in, things that are concerning to our country with regards

02:19to whether it be CFIUS or whether it be sanctions or whether it be, you know, international

02:23artificial intelligence. What's the biggest concern you have when it comes to international

02:29financial relationships and issues? Well, I have many different concerns, but in the

02:35realm of sanctions, we have very powerful sanctions that are available because of the

02:46important role of the dollar in international transactions. The ability to cut off foreign

02:54banks or other businesses or individuals from the ability to transact through the U.S. financial

03:03system and to participate in the dollar, the dollarized. Okay, so basically your protection

03:11of the dollar is one of your greatest concerns. I think that that's important, and the more

03:17we have used sanctions, the more countries look for ways to engage in financial transactions

03:28that don't involve the dollar. Okay, according to Executive Order 13818, a foreign person

03:34is to be sanctioned if the Treasury Secretary finds them responsible for or complicit in

03:39or have directly or indirectly engaged in serious human rights abuse. In Russia, we

03:44sanctioned Vladimir, with regards to Russia, we sanctioned Vladimir Putin and the Foreign

03:48Minister following the invasion of Ukraine. With respect to the Uyghur genocide, is Treasury's

03:53position that this standard for sanctions applies to, with respect to the Uyghurs, is

03:59it Treasury's position that this standard applies for sanctions against Xi Jinping?

04:05If not, why have the Chinese leadership been spared?

04:09Well, we have engaged in sanctions related to the Uyghurs under the force.

04:19My question is, you sanctioned the leadership of Russia, but you haven't sanctioned the

04:22leadership of China. Why? That's the basic question.

04:27This is a basic foreign policy issue that...

04:31Well, sanctions fall under your jurisdiction, so the administration and you working together

04:39have not felt that this is important yet.

04:42This is a question I would suggest that you refer to the State Department.

04:50Okay, well, I know that one of our members talked about the sanctions against various

04:54banks in China, with regards to drug money and mixing and cartel money. I think it's

04:59important that we continue that. I sat on the Chinese Select Committee, and it is a

05:03really, really big deal that we continue to sanction those banks that facilitate the money

05:08laundering of money from the drug cartels, because that's one of the ways we can kind

05:11of help thwart that.

05:12With that, I yield my time back.

Luetkemeyer Presses Yellen On Potential Taiwan Invasion: 'I Think We Need To Have A Plan In Place'

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