Rep. Fitzgerald Unveils BRIDGE Act to Counter CCP’s Belt and Road Initiative

Rep. Scott Fitzgerald (R-Wis.) on Tuesday introduced legislation that seeks to counter the Chinese regime’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—one of the world’s most ambitious and controversial development programs—citing immediate and long-term risks to national and economic security. The bill (pdf), named the Build Responsible Infrastructure Development for the Global Economy (BRIDGE) Act, directs the Department of State to develop a comprehensive, government-wide strategy on countering the BRI, which was launched by the Chinese regime in 2013 with the aim of building Beijing’s geopolitical influence along trade routes linking China, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Europe. It requires the submission of a report from Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, and relevant authorities regarding the scope of efforts by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to utilize the BRI to undermine the United States-led international world order. The BRIDGE Act also …