‘Axis of Evil’: China and Allies Russia, Iran, North Korea Pose Threat to America, Says Gordon Chang

China analyst Gordon Chang has said that Beijing and its “axis of evil”—Russia, Iran, and North Korea—pose the biggest threat to America. He’s concerned that U.S. President Joe Biden is reversing Trump-era safeguards against it.

Speaking to The Epoch Times’ American Thought Leaders at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Chang said that despite the issues that divide them, Russia and China had developed an “enduring partnership,” and both view America as an adversary.

Chang added, “Neither Iran nor North Korea could develop nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and engage in all sorts of dangerous activities, were it not for the backing that China gives them.”

He noted that Beijing and Tehran had recently announced a 25-year strategic partnership worth $400 billion, which he believes has the potential to be dangerous.

“This means that Iran is able to fund its terrorist paws like Hezbollah and Hamas,“ he said. ”It’s able to work in Lebanon in ways that destabilize that society because China gives it backing.”

On the relationship between Russia and China, Chang said the two nations were historically adversaries, trading territory and fighting wars, but are now united in a common view against America.

“But really, what we have right now, is Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping look at the world in the same way,“ he said. ”They view their interests in the same way, and they identify the same adversary, which is us.”

Chang expressed concern about America’s China policies under President Joe Biden but noted that all new U.S. administrations take some time to figure out their approach to China.

He expects something more concrete will emerge by April.

Biden Reverses Trump-Era Executive Orders

In the meantime, Biden has reversed a number of Trump-era executive orders, including one he repealed just hours after taking the oath of office that provided protection from Beijing.

“Most notably, there was Trump’s May 1, 2020, executive order, which prohibited [power] grid operators in the U.S. from buying equipment from China, and that prevented China from selling sabotaged equipment,” Chang said. 

He noted that Biden threw out the order saying his administration would be reviewing its China policy. But Chang believes this protection could have been left in place until a new strategy emerged.

“I can’t see any reason why he would allow the Chinese to sabotage the American grid,“ Chang said. ”Especially when we saw what happened in Texas right now. What happens when a grid is not resilient?”

Biden has also changed a portion of an amended executive order that prevented Americans from investing in companies linked to communist China’s military.

Under Chinese law, private companies must share data with the ruling Communist Party, which experts have said creates a national security risk when foreign firms do business with Chinese companies.

“China has this doctrine of military-civil fusion, which means that every Chinese company can be raided for its technology if the People’s Liberation Army wants it. So that means every Chinese company is military-linked in one way or another,” Chang said.

Chang explained that this meant China should be viewed differently from the rest of the liberal democratic world because China is as a completely unified state entity.

“We need to adjust our thinking to understand how China operates. Because if we don’t understand how China operates, we’re not going to be able to do anything about it,” he said.

Watch Full Interview

Gordon Chang: Will Biden Allow Investment in Companies Tied to China’s Military?