The US government is concerned that China will upgrade its defense sector with the help of US investments. Washington fears this could undermine US national security. US President Biden wants to prevent that.
US President Joe Biden is targeting China amid major tensions and seeking to regulate certain US investments. Biden issued a corresponding decree with the aim of protecting sensitive technologies.
Washington accuses Beijing of exploiting US investments to develop its military capabilities. “We want to prevent China from acquiring and using the most advanced technologies to advance military modernization and undermine US national security,” a US government official said.
Serious tensions between Washington and Beijing
The relationship between the USA and China has long been tense, including economically. The government representative made it clear that this was a measure to protect national security and not a brake on investment.
According to the US government, the following sectors are affected: semiconductors, certain artificial intelligence systems and quantum information technologies. The latter enable the calculation of algorithms that are too complex for today’s computers.
US investments in such sectors in China could be banned by the government in the future after examination. There should be a reporting requirement for certain investments. The decree is aimed at “questionable countries” – although only China is expressly mentioned.