US Navy secretary says countering China will require ‘all of government’ response

The secretary of the US Navy said on Wednesday that for the US to meet the challenge of countering the threat of China, it would need to take a page from China’s playbook and employ an “all of government” approach.

Additionally, Richard Spencer said, that approach required a larger reliance on US allies in the Indo-Pacific region.

“We have a competitor now that has no differentiation between military and civilian,” Spencer said in an address at the Washington-based Brookings Institution, referring to China’s unified approach across its public and private sectors when it comes to competing with the US. “It is an all-of-government approach.”

“I continually underscore that this is an all-of-government [effort] that we must do,” Spencer, who also briefly served as acting defence secretary, said.

By that, he said, he meant the Pentagon needed to coordinate efforts with other governmental agencies, including the Commerce, Treasury and Agriculture departments.

As it battles China on trade, technological and diplomatic fronts, the US government has taken several steps toward that end.