Tim Kaine

In Virginia, there is 100,000 electric vehicles on the road in my Commonwealth of eight plus million people.

We need to have some advances in charging.

Every Volvo Mack truck that you see on the road in North America is made in Dublin, Virginia.

I just got back from Laos and Vietnam where I was the first U.S. Senator to visit Laos in 15 years.

I found a country hungry for U.S. presence, and I found a country littered with debt trap infrastructure projects that they will never be able to pay back.

I think one of the reasons that China is addressing this issue is not just because we have asked but Congress has been deeply engaged as well.

I will also just indicate that for me the greatest vehicle for building the partnerships that are going to be necessary is to advance partnerships around technology.

If you look at the statement of NATO, this was the most far reaching statement of concerns of European partners about what China is doing in Europe.

I also want to underscore this is a recommendation from Senator Coons.

I firmly support the longevity of our transatlantic alliance, but I also believe that some of our European partners need to have a more realistic understanding of the very real risk that an aggressive PRC poses, not just to our national…

It is imperative that our NATO allies increase their defense spend and take efforts to revitalize their own industrial base.

In order for the United States to be seen as a credible, reliable partner and provide an alternate choice to the PRC, we need to at least be showing up.

I found a country hungry for U.S. presence, and I found a country littered with debt trap infrastructure projects that they will never be able to pay back.

I just got back from Laos and Vietnam where I was the first U.S. Senator to visit Laos in 15 years.

I think one of the reasons that China is addressing this issue is not just because we have asked but Congress has been deeply engaged as well.

We have to own the absence of confirmed ambassadors, more than 20 openings in the Americas and in Africa.

Africa and the Americas--32 of the 35 youngest countries in the world are in Africa, and the population growth there as well as a whole lot of other factors make it a really important area of strategic focus.

I will also just indicate that for me the greatest vehicle for building the partnerships that are going to be necessary is to advance partnerships around technology.

I would simply say that I think the steps that we have taken with respect to financial institutions, I would offer--I think those steps are more significant than is widely understood.

I also want to underscore this is a recommendation from Senator Coons.

But we need to do more, and we have to contest China's actions not only in terms of their forward basing strategy but their desire to go after Africa's rare earths that will be critical for our industrial and technological capabilities.

I share deeply the concern that China's support to Russia--Russia's defense industrial base--has not only changed the context of the conflict in Ukraine, but it will be a long term security challenge to the Indo-Pacific.

If you look at the statement of NATO, this was the most far reaching statement of concerns of European partners about what China is doing in Europe.

We need to make sure in the deployment of charging technologies we are not just look at passenger vehicles, but we are also looking at trucks.

In Virginia, there is 100,000 electric vehicles on the road in my Commonwealth of eight plus million people.