Thread by @AmbassadorTai

I have said this before and I will continue to say it: the U.S.-China trade and economic relationship is one of profound consequence. Follow this thread for some live excerpts of my speech at @CSIS.

@CSIS This bilateral relationship is complex and competitive. President Biden welcomes that competition to support American workers, grow our economy, and create jobs at home.

@CSIS For too long, China’s lack of adherence to global trading norms has undercut the prosperity of Americans and others around the world.

@CSIS When it comes to our relationship with China, what’s best for American workers is growing the American economy to create more opportunity and more jobs with better wages here in the United States.

@CSIS As the United States Trade Representative, I intend to deliver on President Biden’s vision for a worker-centered trade policy in the U.S.-China trade dynamic. We need to show that trade policy can be a force for good in the lives of everyday people.

@CSIS President Biden has been clear: the key to our global competitiveness and creating shared prosperity begins at home.

@CSIS We have to make smart domestic investments to increase our own competitiveness. We must invest in research and development and clean energy technology, strengthen our manufacturing base, and incentivize companies to Buy American up and down the supply chain.

@CSIS The Administration is working closely with Congress to build on those actions with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal and the Build Back Better agenda.

@CSIS And today, I will lay out the starting point of our Administration’s strategic vision for realigning our trade policies towards China to defend the interests of America’s workers, businesses, farmers and producers, and strengthen our middle class.

@CSIS First, we will discuss with China its performance under the Phase One Agreement. China made commitments that benefit certain American industries, including agriculture, that we must enforce.

@CSIS Second, we will start a targeted tariff exclusion process. We will ensure that the existing enforcement structure optimally serves our economic interests. We will keep open the potential for additional exclusion processes, as warranted.

@CSIS Third, we continue to have serious concerns with China’s state-centered and non-market trade practices that were not addressed in the Phase One deal. As we work to enforce the terms of Phase One, we will raise these broader policy concerns with Beijing.

@CSIS Finally and critically, we will continue to work with allies to shape the rules for fair trade in the 21st century, and facilitate a race to the top for market economies and democracies.

@CSIS Even with the Phase One Agreement in place, China’s government continues to pour billions of dollars into targeted industries and continues to shape its economy to the will of the state – hurting the interests of workers here in the U.S and around the world.

@CSIS Those policies have reinforced a zero-sum dynamic in the world economy where China’s growth and prosperity come at the expense of workers and economic opportunity here in the U.S. and other market-based, democratic economies.

@CSIS As our economic relationship with China evolves, so too must our tactics to defend our interests.

@CSIS Unlike the past, this administration will engage from a position of strength because we are investing in our workers and our infrastructure.

@CSIS And we must harness and leverage the talent of our people by investing in education and worker training – investments that are included in the President’s Build Back Better plan.

@CSIS Beyond our domestic investments, in the coming days, I intend to have frank conversations with my counterpart in China.

@CSIS But above all else, we must defend – to the hilt – our economic interests.

That means taking all steps necessary to protect ourselves against the waves of damage inflicted over the years through unfair competition.

@CSIS We will work closely with our allies and like-minded partners towards building truly fair international trade that enables healthy competition.

@CSIS The agreements we reached in June with the EU and the UK to resolve the large civil aircraft disputes at the WTO demonstrate @POTUS' commitment to work with our partners to create a more level playing field for our workers.

@CSIS @POTUS Our goal is to bring deliberative, stable, long-term thinking to our approach – and to work through bilateral and multilateral channels. The core of our strategy is a commitment to ensuring we work with our allies to create fair and open markets.

@CSIS @POTUS There is a future in which all of us in the global economy can grow and succeed – where prosperity is inclusive within our own borders and across those borders too.

@CSIS @POTUS @POTUS' priorities that I’ve laid out today are aimed at achieving a shared prosperity that is good for our workers, producers, and businesses; good for our allies; and good for the global economy.