After tightening launched by US President Joe Biden on American investments in China in the hi-tech sector, Beijing rises up. A move explained by the US administration dictated by “national security and non-economic” reasons which imposes limits on semiconductors, quantum and some artificial intelligence systems. “The Biden administration is committed to keeping America safe and defending national security by safeguarding technologies that are critical to the next generation of military innovation,” the White House explained. But China is not there and, a few hours after Biden’s executive order, he expresses his dissent stating that the new US policy on limiting investment in China’s hi-tech sector “severely disrupts the security of global industrial and supply chains.”
China’s grievances
China lodged ‘solemn grievances’ to the United States expressing towards the new ones decided measures to limit investment in Chinese technology “strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition”, and ensuring that “it will pay close attention to relevant developments and resolutely safeguard its rights and interests”. In a note from the Foreign Ministry, a spokesperson said that, “under the pretext of national security”, the US aims to “deprive China of its right to development and to safeguard its hegemony and interests. This is pure economic coercion and technological bullying.”
The move by the United States “has seriously violated the principles of the market economy and fair competition, created turmoil in the international economic and commercial order, shaken the stability of global industrial and supply chains”, “seriously damaging China’s interests ”, of the US itself and of the global business community. Beijing – continues the note – “urges the US to maintain seriously the promise of the American president Joe Biden not to want the decoupling between the two economies and not to hinder the economic development of China. At the same time, the hope is that Washington will stop “politicising, instrumenting and using economic, commercial and technological issues as weapons”, revoking “immediately the wrong decisions and restrictions on investments in China” in order to favor “cooperation economic and commercial environment in a favorable environment”.
L’executive order from Biden it forces the Treasury Department to limit some American investments in China in sensitive high-tech industries including semiconductors, quantum computing and artificial intelligence. The restrictions, which are expected to take effect next year, come as the US administration seeks to strengthen its stance vis-à-vis China on military, economic and technological fronts. (Ticker)