Biden Keeping Trump's China Tariffs Despite Beijing's Plea

“The World Trade Organization has clearly ruled that theSection 301 tariffs violate WTO rules,” Shu said.“Cancellation of all additional tariffs on China is beneficial to both China and the US, as well as to the entire world.”

In 2018 and 2019, the Trump administration imposed tariffs on thousands of imports from China valued at some US$370 billion at the time after a Section 301 investigation found that China was coercing American firms to transfer sensitive technology to do business and misappropriatingintellectual property.

On August 3, Raimondo told media that thewill continue to sell billions of dollars of chips a year to China but the vast majority will not be of the cutting-edge variety.

“We are not going to sell the most sophisticated American chips to China that they want for their military capacity,” she said.

She said selling certain chips to China will ultimately generate revenue for American businesses to invest in further research and development (R&D).

A Hubei-based writer says in an article published by Henan Broadcasting System's social media account on Wednesday that Raimondo's comments may mean that there is room for China and theto discuss the sanctions imposed by the Biden administration.

But he also opines that it's difficult for Raimondo to eschew the influence of some anti-Chinapoliticians.

“For a very long time, 'anti-China' has been the epitome of political correctness among politicians in Washington – to the point that all seniorofficials who have recently visited Beijing have been required to take a tougher stance against China,” says the writer.“In this situation, thegovernment cannot make rational decisions, as senior officials are all controlled by the 'anti-China' public opinion they have created.”

That writer says the intensifying political fight between Republicans and Democrats will continue to affect America's China policy.

On May 20, the Cybersecurity Review Office, a unit of China's Cyberspace Administration, said China's key national infrastructure operators are forbidden to purchase products from Micron Technology because thechip maker poses network security risks. Some Chinese commentators complained that Micron refused to reinvest in China.

On June 16, Micron announced that it will invest $603 million over the next few years in its chip packaging facility in the city of Xian.

Chen Feng, a columnist at Guancha.cn, writes that Raimondo wanted China to complete the purchases of Boeing 747 Max airplanes that it had ordered and cancel its sanctions against Micron Technology but she has so far failed to achieve these goals.

Chen says China has gained bargaining power in the chip war against theafter Huawei last week launched its flagship smartphone Mate60 Pro, which uses its own Kirin 9000s chip, last week. He says Huawei may have used the products of Empyrean, China's electronic design automation (EDA) software maker, to design its high-end chip.

On August 28, Raimondo and Wang held a four-hour meeting in Beijing. Both sides agreed to set up a commercial issues working group and an export control enforcement information exchange platform.

Vice Premier He Lifeng told Raimondo on August 29 that he will make positive efforts to“deepen consenand extend cooperation” between China and the US. It appeared that Beijing wanted to set aside the chip war and discuss other trade issues with theat the time.

But on the same day, Huawei commenced sales of its Mate60 Pro. Research firm TechInsights said the handset's central processing unit was made by SMIC with its N+2 technology.

Some analysts said TechInsights's findings could prompt theCongress to propose harsher curbs against China and push the government to strengthen its sanctions.

On September 5,National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said thegovernment wanted to know the exact details of the process in producing the Mate60 Pro before making further comments.

He added that thecurbs“foon national security concerns, not the broader question of commercial decoupling.”

Read: SMIC
bypassescurbs to make 7nm chips

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