[TheEpochTimesNovember192022](Comprehensive report by Epoch Times reporter Xu Yiyang) British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (Xin Weicheng) was originally scheduled to meet with the top leader of the Communist Party of China, Xi Jinping, on November 16. Canceled at the last minute. On the same day, the British government decided to prevent Chinese technology companies from acquiring the UK’s largest chip company.
Sunak was due to meet Xi on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G20) summit on November 16, but canceled at the last minute due to “scheduling” issues. Downing Street said Sunak still wanted to talk to Xi.
Chen Pokong, a political commentator in the United States, believes that there may be many reasons for Sunak’s sudden cancellation of the talks with Xi Jinping. Fang refused, and another possibility is a video that is currently circulating on the global network.
Chen Pokong said in his self-media program on November 18 that this video was of Xi Jinping meeting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Justin Trudeau) at the G20 meeting on November 16, and publicly accused him of leaking their conversation to the media. content.
Chen Pokong said that the CCP has always asked others to act in accordance with its own set, and demanded that the other party understand its authoritarian way of operation. Talk to Xi Jinping.
On the same day that Sunak canceled his meeting with Xi Jinping, news broke out in the UK: the British government decided to prevent Chinese capital from acquiring Newport Wafer Fab (NWF, Newport Wafer Fab), the largest chip manufacturer in the UK.
The British government issued a final order on November 16, requiring Chinese-funded technology company Nexperia to sell 86% of the shares in the Newport fab.
Nexperia is a Dutch subsidiary of Chinese semiconductor giant Wingtech, formerly the standard product business unit of NXP in the Netherlands. In 2016, Nexperia was spun off from NXP, was acquired by Wingtech Technology in 2019, and completed 100% holding in 2020.
Nexperia initially owned a 14% stake in the Newport fab and will increase its stake to 100% in July 2021. In August of the same year, all transfer procedures for the acquisition were completed. In May, the British government opened a national security investigation into the deal.
The British government announced on the evening of November 16 that the British business minister Grant Shapps issued an order requiring Nexperia to sell at least 86% of the shares in the Newport fab to prevent potential national security risks. .
Shapps said allowing Nexperia to develop the Newport fab could “undermine the UK’s capabilities in this area”.
Anexperia issued a statement saying it was “shocked” by the British government’s decision.
The government’s decision was welcomed by the China Studies Group, made up of Conservative MPs, which opposed closer ties with China.
“Our long-term security depends on the resilience of our economy and society, and that means ensuring we do not allow strategic assets to fall into the hands of authoritarian states for short-term growth,” they said in a statement.
The economic and trade relationship between the UK and China was once quite close. But in recent years, the relationship between the UK and the Chinese regime has taken a sharp turn for the worse as serious differences have emerged over human rights, Hong Kong and security issues.
Ken McCallum (Ken McCallum), head of the intelligence agency of the British Military Intelligence (MI5), emphasized on November 16 that “the scale and breadth of China’s (CCP) acquisition of information not only uses intelligence officials and cyber hackers, but also Using businessmen and researchers to steal government and commercial information.”
Sunak also said at the G20 summit that the Chinese Communist regime is “the greatest national threat to our economic security”, but he also emphasized the importance of relations with China. When running for the leadership of the Conservative Party in July this year, Sunak said that the CCP was the “number one threat” to the security of the UK and the world.
Editor in charge: Lian Shuhua