(NewsNation) — Despite Russian tanks and troops continuing to bring destruction in Ukraine, a new poll shows Americans really view another country as the biggest potential threat.
According to the Pew Research Center, more Americans view China than Russia as the top concern.
China is already a major player in the world’s economy, gradually moving to the forefront of power and influence as tensions grow with the West.
Two thirds of those polled said China’s influence across the globe has grown stronger in recent years. More than 40 percent called China the world’s top economy.
Another 40 percent still say the U.S. is on top. Government data shows that China is currently America’s largest goods trading partner, with total goods and services trade coming in at more than $615 billion in 2020, according to the Trade Representative Office.
With the U.S. relying on imports including electronics, appliances and other items, shipping delays in China continue to bring supply chain issues.
FBI Director Christopher Ray announced that the agency is opening a new China counterintelligence investigation about every 12 hours.
“They [China] have stolen more of our personal and corporate data than every other nation combined,” Ray said.
According to Ray, the FBI has 56 field offices around the nation and all of the offices have cases of Chinese attempts to steal American information and technology.
While most of the West is focused on the bloody assault in Ukraine, China seems to be making aggressive moves against its own neighbor, Taiwan, by sending warplanes into the island’s airspace.
The move is leading Republicans on Capitol Hill to push President Joe Biden to get tougher on China.
“If you don’t think that China is sitting there watching this Ukraine situation and thinking, ‘OK, deterrence failed with Russia, when can we reach out and take Taiwan?,’ you’re crazy. I mean, we have got to deter China’s attempted invasion of Taiwan. It’s what they want to do,” said Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.)