On Monday, August 5th, United States Republican federal Congresswoman Young Kim, from California, issued a statement on her official website announcing that she and Congressman Colin Allred jointly introduced H.R. 9265, the Stopping PRC Environmental Exploitation and Degradation Act (SPEED), last week to combat the damage and harm caused by China’s investments in Africa to the environment, ecology, and public health.
In her statement, she wrote, “Through the Belt and Road Initiative, China has become Africa’s largest trading partner, creditor nation, and foreign direct investment source. China’s debt trap diplomacy is often carried out through enterprises, which may cause damage and harm to local communities and critical biodiversity areas.”
Young Kim, a Korean-American congresswoman and chair of the House Indo-Pacific Subcommittee, stated, “China’s Belt and Road Initiative not only traps developing countries in Xi Jinping’s debt trap diplomacy but also exposes vulnerable populations to harmful ecological, environmental, and public health risks. We cannot allow China to act with impunity, expanding its global influence while violating international environmental and labor laws.”
“I am honored to lead the SPEED Act to oppose the Belt and Road Initiative and hold China accountable for its exploitative actions, deliberate environmental degradation, and threat to the livelihoods of African communities,” she added.
Allred, a Democratic federal congressman from Texas, stated, “We cannot allow China and China-related companies to continue exploiting African countries, exposing African people to harmful ecological and public health risks. The bipartisan SPEED Act will strengthen U.S. policy, authorize sanctions, and hold the Chinese government accountable for adverse environmental, ecological, and public health events in Africa.”
The statement outlines that the SPEED Act will counter China’s influence in Africa in the following ways:
– Establishing U.S. policy to oppose entities affiliated with China that do not comply with host country and international environmental protection and labor laws when extracting natural resources in Africa;
– Requiring the State Department and USAID to develop a strategy detailing how the United States will collaborate with Sub-Saharan African countries to address the environmental disasters caused by Chinese companies;
– Allowing sanctions to be imposed on Chinese entities responsible for environmental degradation and public health incidents on the African continent.