Electronics

According to Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation, several foreign media reported on January 31 that the United States government has stopped issuing supply licenses to Chinese enterprises for export products to China, and is considering cutting off all links between American suppliers and Huawei, China, and prohibiting Intel, Qualcomm and other companies from providing any products to China. Mao Ning, spokesman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on January 31 that China is firmly opposed to the US side's generalization of the concept of national security, the abuse of national power, and the baseless and unreasonable suppression of Chinese enterprises. The foreign media noticed that when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was about to visit China, the United States was constantly moving towards China. After attracting the Netherlands and Japan to join the camp of suppressing Chinese chips, the latest statement of South Korean Prime Minister Han Dezhu was also interpreted by the media as that South Korea seemed to want to join the camp led by the United States. The Japan Times commented that Washington has been using economic tools to achieve its foreign policy goal - to put pressure on Beijing and distort the principle of free trade in order to win the competition with China. Chinese scholars have warned that although Antony Blinken will visit China, if the United States does not revise and adjust its policy towards China, it will be difficult to make a real breakthrough in improving Sino US relations.

Naked technological hegemony

Reuters and the Financial Times quoted people familiar with the matter on January 31 as saying that the US government has stopped issuing supply licenses to American enterprises for export products to China, including products below 5G level, such as 4G, 6th and 7th generation wireless network technology, artificial intelligence, high-performance computing and cloud projects. A number of people familiar with the application for export license in the United States said that American enterprises are still applying to the United States Department of Commerce for exporting products to Huawei, but the approval of some applications has been delayed recently, and all parties are still waiting for further and clearer information. For relevant reports, the spokesman of the US Department of Commerce only said that it would "continuously evaluate our policies and regulations". Huawei did not directly comment on the relevant reports, but Yu Chengdong, Huawei's managing director, said in his microblog on the same day that innovative technology did not come easily. Huawei will not be afraid of challenges, continue to invest in research and development, and continue to climb up. Huacheng's import and export data observation report.

Bloomberg reported that the U.S. government is considering cutting off all links between U.S. suppliers and Huawei, and prohibiting U.S. suppliers including Intel, Qualcomm and AMD from providing any products to Huawei. This means that Huawei's mobile phones and smart hardware devices cannot use Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips in the future, and computer products cannot purchase Intel chips. According to the report, if this policy is passed, all license applications from American suppliers to supply to China will be rejected. People familiar with the matter said that the policy was still at an early stage of discussion and might be adopted in May.

"China is seriously concerned about the relevant reports, and we are paying close attention to the relevant trends." Mao Ning said at the regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on January 31 that the US side's practice violates the principles of market economy and international economic and trade rules, and undermines the confidence of the international community in the US business environment. It is a naked scientific and technological hegemony. China will continue to firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

Xiang Ligang, chairman of the Information Consumption Alliance, said on January 31 that if the Biden government implemented this policy, Huawei's consumer businesses in the two major areas of computer and mobile phones would be affected. However, it should also be noted that in recent years, China has begun to increase its production lines on a large scale, and Huawei is also making relevant preparations. Therefore, the United States will only accelerate the process of China's chip self-sufficiency to a certain extent if it does not issue a license.

In recent years, the United States has done everything to suppress Huawei. In 2019, the Trump government included Huawei in the "entity list" and imposed strict restrictions on the export of American technology to China. In March 2021, the Federal Communications Commission of the United States issued a list of so-called "communication equipment and service providers that pose unacceptable risks to national security". Huawei, ZTE and other five Chinese science and technology enterprises were listed; In November 2022, the list was officially launched. But even so, China and the United States still have the most basic cooperation in the field of science and technology during this period. The Trump government did not stop the U.S. Department of Commerce from continuing to issue export licenses to Qualcomm, Intel and other companies, allowing them to provide Huawei with technology products unrelated to 5G. For example, Qualcomm was allowed to sell 4G smart phone chips to Huawei in 2020. Biden also continued this policy at the beginning of taking office. Huawei's suppliers obtained a sales license worth $61 billion from April to November 2021.

American media analysis said that the latest action contemplated by the Biden government is to "kill Huawei" and explicitly seek the exit of Chinese enterprises in the future development of science and technology. The Wall Street Journal said that if the United States government promoted this action, it would mark the resumption of high-risk conflict between China and the United States, the two largest economies in the world. Russell, a technical expert at the "New America Security Center", said that the latest move of the United States was partly due to the fact that Huawei had made great changes compared with its focus on 5G four years ago, such as expanding its business to submarine cable, cloud computing and other fields. Treolo, senior vice president of China affairs of Albright Stone Bridge Group in the United States, said that the move of the United States Department of Commerce would have a significant impact on the income of American suppliers. Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation reported.

South Korea wants to follow the future?

While brewing the latest action against Huawei, the United States has been encouraging allies to jointly prevent China's research and development of semiconductors and other technologies. According to the Yonhap news agency on January 31, with regard to the restriction of the United States on chips to China, South Korean Prime Minister Han De-soo announced on the same day that "the world hopes that China can carry out economic, social, political and diplomatic operations based on rules, and South Korea will also participate in them." He also stressed that the South Korean side is maintaining communication and consultation with China on relevant issues, in order to avoid negative impact on the ROK-China relations. Yonhap believes that Han De-soo's remarks are indicative of the possibility of South Korea's participation in the US-led semiconductor restrictions on China. Several foreign media previously disclosed that in the negotiations concluded on January 27, the United States, the Netherlands and Japan reached an agreement to restrict the export of some advanced chip manufacturing equipment to China. The Netherlands and Japan agreed to extend the export control measures of advanced chip manufacturing equipment adopted by the United States against China in October last year to domestic enterprises, including Asma, Tokyo Electronics and Nikon.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang stressed in a telephone conversation with Dutch Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hukstra on January 30 that China is willing to work with the Netherlands to maintain the stability of the international industrial chain supply chain and maintain an open but not divided, orderly but not chaotic international trade environment. Qin Gang stressed that openness and pragmatism are the biggest characteristics of Sino-Dutch relations. China is accelerating high-quality development and high-level opening up, which will bring greater opportunities for China-Dutch cooperation. China is willing to strengthen multilateral cooperation with the Netherlands. Hukstra said that the Netherlands is willing to close exchanges with China at all levels, deepen cooperation in economic and trade, arms control, non-proliferation, climate change and other fields, and promote the continuous development of the open and pragmatic comprehensive cooperative partnership between the two countries. The Netherlands will continue to deal with economic and trade matters with China in a responsible manner. Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation Report.

The United States "does not hesitate to distort the principle of free trade"

The Japan Times commented on January 31 that Washington has been implementing the so-called "economic governance" strategy - using economic tools to achieve foreign policy objectives - to put pressure on Beijing. Since the end of the Second World War, the United States has always regarded free trade as the basic principle of the international economic order, but now, in order to win the competition with China, it is willing to distort this principle. The reason why the United States is trying to maintain its technological advantage and prevent China's rise is that artificial intelligence and quantum technology are the next generation of military technology. Having technological advantages in these fields is directly related to maintaining military advantages.

The Financial Times believes that the timing of the US Department of Commerce's increasing crackdown on Huawei this time is also worth pondering. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reportedly will visit China from February 5 to 6, which will be his first visit to China since he served as Secretary of State for two years. On January 31, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post quoted Jude Blanchett, a scholar at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think-tank, as saying that Beijing will start a dialogue with Antony Blinken to slow down "some US actions in the field of science and technology". Michael Shiwen, the chief director of the East Asia Program of the Quincy Institute of National Affairs, said at the online seminar held by the think tank on January 30 that Antony Blinken needed to re engage with China and discuss with China how to improve crisis prevention and management, which has never been so important in China US relations. Shi Wen warned that the issue of Taiwan and the South China Sea is the most important core of the tension between the United States and China, and if not carefully controlled, it may become out of control and escalate into conflict. Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation reported.

Song Guoyou, deputy director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University, said on January 31 that the fundamental purpose of the United States to formulate its policy towards China in accordance with national interests and dialogue demands is to maintain the strategic advantage of the United States in China and win the strategic competition with China. Under this kind of thinking, the United States will certainly choose the opportunity to introduce some policies that are unfavorable to China. Although Antony Blinken plans to visit China in early February to discuss with China the "barrier" to prevent conflicts, if the United States does not amend and adjust its policy towards China, it is unlikely that the improvement of Sino US relations will make a real breakthrough.