Professor Seth D. Kaplan: Should We Sanction China Too?

The State Department's recently released annual human rights report once again condemned China's abuses. It reiterates that the Chinese government is committing genocide against the Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang and subjecting them to forced labor, forced sterilization and arbitrary imprisonment. Meanwhile, Beijing is leveraging its economic heft to build up its military so as to challenge America's position in the world and potentially invade Taiwan, on which our crucial semiconductor supply chain depends.

Lawmakers from both parties have backed the Biden administration's threat to impose sanctions on China if it bolsters Russia's military. But Beijing is a greater threat to our security and economy than Moscow could ever be—and has committed a long series of human rights abuses. So why has the U.S. barely used sanctions against China, especially compared to its actions vis-à-vis Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine?

It's not that we haven't tried to slow the flow of American money and technology to China. It's just that we haven't tried very hard.

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2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices