Beijing, Oct 10 (EFE).- Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao has asked the United States to “precisely” define its concept of national security and avoid “politicizing and instrumentalizing it” to restrict its investments and trade with Chinese companies.
Wang met the bipartisan delegation of the US Senate led by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in Beijing on Monday and expressed his concern about what he considered US “restrictions” on trade, a ministry press statement said on Tuesday.
Wang said the talks were “rational and pragmatic,” expressing hopes that “the US will precisely define what it understands by national security” and “avoid oversizing, politicizing, and instrumentalizing the concept.”
The minister expressed concern about issues such as US export controls and restrictions on investment in China, sanctions on domestic Chinese companies, restrictions on bilateral personnel exchanges, and the treatment of Chinese companies that invest in America.
The trade minister emphasized that “China does not shy away from competition” and was willing to work with the US to “create a favorable business environment that boosts bilateral trade.”
Before the Schumer-led delegation left for China, the US Commerce Department added 42 more Chinese companies to its export blacklist, accusing them of providing technical support to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Beijing condemned the move, calling it “an act of economic coercion and unilateral intimidation.”
In August, an executive order by US President Joe Biden banned US venture capital companies from investing in three key sectors of the Chinese economy: semiconductors, quantum computing, and artificial intelligence.
On Monday, Schumer asked Chinese leaders for “fair trade practices” and “reciprocity” to put relations between the two countries back on track.
Schumer, who led the first delegation of US senators to visit China in four years, said: “Beijing has significantly increased its trade barriers in recent decades, which has restricted the ability of American companies to compete effectively.”
He said the US wanted China to address issues like “technology transfers, intellectual property theft, and intimidation of American companies in China.”
However, he defended that Washington must “prioritize” its national security by “protecting” its technology. “We are not seeking any confrontation, but we must defend our values.”
The visit is part of a series of diplomatic trips to China by senior US officials aimed at mitigating the worsening relationship between the two superpowers.
Notable figures who have visited China recently include Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, and US Special Envoy for Climate Change John Kerry.
The relationship between Beijing and Washington has deteriorated in recent years, primarily due to trade and technology disputes, the imposition of sanctions, tensions over Taiwan, and China’s ambiguous stance on the conflict in Ukraine, where it has refrained from unequivocally condemning the Russian invasion. EFE
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