Joe Biden wants to tighten the rules on American investments in China
President Joe Biden's soon-to-be-released executive order is expected to limit U.S. investment in advanced technologies that have national security applications.
The Biden administration is on the about to tighten rules on certain U.S. corporate investments overseas in a bid to limit China's ability to acquire technologies that could enhance its military prowess, according to a U.S. official familiar with the talks.
President Joe Biden's soon-to-be-released executive order is expected to limit U.S. investment in cutting-edge technologies that have national security applications — such as next-generation military capabilities that could help China improve the speed and accuracy of military decision-making, according to the official, who was not authorized to comment and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The expected action is the latest effort by the White House to target China's military and technology sectors amid increasingly strained relations between the world's two largest economies.
In October, the Biden administration imposed export controls to limit China's ability to access advanced chips, which it says can be used to make weapons , commit human rights violations and improve the speed and accuracy of its military logistics.
Chinese J-20 stealth fighter aircraft performs at the International Exhibition of China Aviation and Aerospace in Zhuhai, Guangdong province in November 2022. (File photo)
The complicated relationship has grown even more strained in recent weeks after the United States shot down a Chinese spy balloon that flew across the country last month. The Biden administration has also released US intelligence findings that raise concern that Beijing is considering supplying Russia with weapons for its war against Ukraine.
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Tensions surfaced as senior G20 diplomats ended a contentious meeting in New Delhi on Thursday with no consensus on the war in Ukraine and concerns over China's growing global influence.
Meanwhile, last week China lambasted the new House of Representatives Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party after it held its first hearing on curbing Beijing's influence. Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning called on its members to reject their ideological bias and win-lose Cold War mentality.
The officials of the x27;administration consulted with allies as they worked to formulate new U.S. investment regulations, the official says.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on Saturday that the Treasury and Commerce Departments delivered reports Friday to lawmakers detailing plans for the new regulatory system to respond to U.S. overseas investment in advanced technologies.
The agencies said they expect to seek additional funding for the White House Budget Investment Screening Program, which is expected to be released on March 9, according to the Journal.
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A spokesman for the White House National Security Council declined to comment on the Treasury and Commerce reports, but noted that administration officials held the Congress briefed on its progress in developing an approach to overseas investment.
The expected action is certain to be met with resistance from US companies. Administration officials have sought to signal to the business community that while they seek to review rules on U.S. investment in China, they are careful not to go overboard.
One of the most important things we can do, from my perspective, is to make sure we draw clear lines between what is competitive and what is national security because, fundamentally, I think the United States does well when we compete on a level playing field with any country in the world, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo said during the meeting. a recent Council on Foreign Relations event.
“But we also want, in the interstices where we see a national security risk, to be able to x27;use the tools available to us to protect the national security of the United States of America.
— Wally Adeyemo, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury
Last year, a bipartisan group of lawmakers urged President Biden to implement a screening system more stringent for investments in foreign adversaries, with China in the foreground.
