US President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday imposing limits on US investments in some Chinese technology companies. a move that could further strain relations with beijing.
This is one of the most important steps the Biden government has taken to curb US investment in China and comes after months of talks with members of the G7, who have been encouraged by Washington to take similar steps.
Senior US officials said at a phone press conference that the move would specifically prevent US venture capital firms from investing in three key sectors of the Chinese economy: semiconductors, quantum computing and artificial intelligence.
In addition, the executive order states that US citizens doing business in China must notify China. U.S. Government on investments in semiconductorsquantum computing and artificial intelligence are three sectors where China has made significant progress in recent years.
As reported by US government representatives, these three sectors have been chosen because of the role they can play in developing China’s military, intelligence, surveillance and cyber capabilities.
Those officials said the United States took this step for national security reasons, specifically to prevent Beijing from using advanced US technological advances to modernize its Armed Forces.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has set the goal of making significant progress in the social, economic and military fields of the country by 2035. including strengthening maritime capacity, Armed forcesIt could pose a threat to Taiwan, an ally of the United States.
In any case, the measure will not be applied automatically. A period of public opinion has now opened, where the US government expects input from interested parties, including companies with investments in China.
Therefore, the details on how to Biden to execute signed executive order The US officials named told the press that they will still be identified this Wednesday.
One of the considerations is the possibility of criminal prosecution for those violating the rules set by the US government, although a decision has not yet been made on this issue.
YouThe option to include exceptions is also being considered Officials said it allows US companies to continue investing in bonds and stocks of Chinese tech companies.
In any case, the executive order may not take effect until next year, which coincides with the presidential election campaign. Biden wants re-electionRepublicans, on the other hand, have not yet chosen their candidates in the primary process, which former President Donald Trump (2017-2021) started as a favourite.