The US Department of Commerce recently announced that 37 Chinese entities will be included in the trade restriction list. The department said that the move was to fulfill its commitment to defend "national security", and also demonstrated its support for the US foreign policy. The statement issued was quite "proud" to announce that, including this action, the current US government has added 355 Chinese entities to the list of entities, which is the most in previous US governments. At present, it is clear that the United States is determined to curb China's development.
The list of 37 entities released this time includes 11 companies accused of participating in the so-called "China High Altitude Balloon Program". The U.S. Department of Commerce said that the program constituted a "major concern" for the national security of the United States. The presidential election in November is about to start, and the political implications behind this move are even more prominent.
Although the United States has later admitted that the Chinese balloon that broke into its airspace last year was just a weather balloon that deviated from its route, the Biden government seems determined to carry out alarmism to the end in order to strive for a leading edge in the election.
As early as February 2023, the United States included six Chinese entities in the "entity list" of export control on the grounds of so-called "support for Chinese military airships and other aerospace projects". Now, on this basis, it has added restricted enterprises, hyped weather balloons all the way to the entire aerospace field, and the United States has conducted various operations to restrict China's technological progress, It is really refreshing the lower limit of people's cognition.
In addition to the 11 companies accused of being related to balloons, the other 22 entities included in the list of entities are due to their involvement in quantum technology breakthroughs. The United States is trying to block China's progress in the field of quantum technology R&D and application, mainly because the United States has not yet formed a clear leading edge over China in this field.
While continuously expanding the list of entities, according to American media reports, the Biden government will also introduce a new tariff policy on Chinese electric vehicles. The tax rate will be raised from 25% to 100%. Chinese made batteries, solar panels and other products will also become the objects of a new round of tariff increase. In fact, These protectionist measures cannot help the United States to form a leading competitiveness in green technology, but will only hinder the overall global green transformation.
In the eyes of China, such behavior of the US government is no different from "economic coercion" and "technological bullying". Prior to that, US Secretary of State Lincoln and Treasury Secretary Yellen had just concluded their visit to China. They hope to resolve disputes in areas where both sides have reached consensus, such as diplomacy, economy, finance and commerce, by means of resuming or establishing a consultation mechanism, which also reflects the Biden administration's intention to repair bilateral relations and responsibly manage and control differences.
Biden has repeatedly stated that his government has no intention of obstructing China's development or "decoupling" from China. However, its latest round of sanctions and the threat of imposing tariffs on China's new energy products clearly show that the United States is accustomed to "saying one thing and doing another" in its relations with China, and its credit, which was already "bankrupt", is now "repeatedly overdrawn".
The US has no choice but to take necessary measures to resolutely defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises. We need to reexamine the commitment and actual input of the United States in repairing bilateral relations.
This article was compiled from the May 13 editorial of China Daily
Original title: With friends like US, who needs enemies
Produced by: Editorial Editorial Office of China Daily
Compiled by: Tu Tian Edited by: Li Haipeng