There is further evidence that Biden is picking up where Trump left off regarding policy towards China as his government is reportedly adding restrictions to Huawei trading licenses.
For much of his presidency Trump expressed concern about the Chinese government stealing intellectual property. This was one of the reasons given for acting to not just block Huawei from US networks, but blocking the use of any US 5G IP in Huawei products. US companies had to apply for special permission to keep doing business with Huawei and it’s this that seems to be the subject of Biden’s latest move.
Reuters was one of the media to report on the matter, citing those handy anonymous sources. Apparently companies will be further restricted from supplying items that can be used with 5G devices. If you think that sounds vague and open-ended then you would have a point. Legal due process was abandoned long ago when it comes to America’s treatment of Huawei and it reserves the right to act against it on the flimsiest of pretexts.
This sort of thing is usually the product of authorities chasing their tale. As soon as a new set of rules are announced everyone inconvenienced by them sets about finding loopholes, which then have to be closed, and so on. Maybe someone flogged Huawei a component t that went into a 5G hotspot or something. Whatever the reason, this would appear to confirm that Biden doesn’t intend to soften the stance on Huawei and China.
BNN Bloomberg reported on China’s predictable reaction, branding the US as unreliable and untrustworthy. “It will severely disrupt the technological exchanges and trade exchanges of the two countries and the world at large, it will undermine the global industrial chains and supply chains,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian is quoted as saying. “The U.S. should stop the suppression on Chinese companies immediately and treat Chinese companies in a fair, just and nondiscriminatory manner.”
Good luck with that Zhao.