US-China Relations - 37. page

Well-known Chinese news site Sina (NASDQ: SINA) recently reported that the Chinese Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress plans to speed up the process of creating new laws that focus on anti-sanctions, anti-interference, and anti-long-arm-jurisdiction. This was in response to the call Xi Jinping made in November 2020, asking law makers to “push forward” on the front of the “foreign-related rule of law.” With the background of the U.S. rallying allies together against communist China, international political analysts expressed the belief that part of China’s strategy is to “use the rule of law to oppose the rule of law.” China expects its new “legal weaponry” will “deter” the West. One of the biggest legal problems China faces today is the application of the U.S. domestic law in China, such as in the case of Huawei. It appears that the new “legal battlefield” is now open for business in the U.S.-China strategic competition.

Source: Sina, March 10, 2021
https://finance.sina.com.cn/jjxw/2021-03-10/doc-ikknscsi0440686.shtml

On Friday March 12, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published a list of five Chinese manufacturers of telecom equipment and services that pose a threat to national security. The list is consistent with requirements in the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019. The list includes Huawei Technologies Co., ZTE Corp., Hytera Communications Corp., Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co., and Dahua Technology Co.

“This list is a big step toward restoring trust in our communications networks,” said Acting Chairwoman Rosenworcel. “Americans are relying on our networks more than ever to work, go to school, or access healthcare, and we need to trust that these communications are safe and secure. This list provides meaningful guidance that will ensure that, as the next-generation networks are built across the country, they do not repeat the mistakes of the past or use equipment or services that will pose a threat to U.S. national security or the security and safety of Americans.”

The Secure Networks Act requires the Commission to publish and maintain a list of communications equipment and services that pose an unacceptable risk to national security or the security and safety of U.S. persons.

Source: FCC, March 12, 2021
https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-releases-list-equipment-services-pose-security-threat

Deutsche Welle Chinese Edition recently reported that Gallop just released the results of a poll conducted a month ago which surveyed over one thousand adult Americans. The poll covers the favorability towards 18 countries. Only 20 percent of those polled had a favorable attitude toward China. This is a 13 percent decline from just last year. In the past decades, the same poll had its highest Chinese favorability rate at 72 percent, right before the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The number suffered a quick decline after that. The Gallop poll showed that the Chinese favorability decline is across party lines, though the Republicans had a lower number. In the past six months, favorability towards Russia also declined to its new record low, at 22 percent. According to Gallop, the deepest impact was caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Iran and North Korea sit at the bottom of the results.

Source: DW Chinese, March 3, 2021
https://bit.ly/3rpLpj0

On March 5, Global Index publisher FTSE Russell announced that it will remove the Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi and tech data company Luokung Technology Corporation from its global indexes. FTSE Russell stated that the decision will take effect on March 12. The decision follows the executive order that the Trump administration signed.

This is the latest development on the issue of Chinese companies that have been delisted from the US and European markets. Earlier this year, the US NASDAQ Index dropped China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom. These are China’s three largest telecommunications companies. On February 26, the New York Stock Exchange also announced the initiation of the delisting of China National Offshore Oil Co., Ltd. (CNOOC), a large Chinese state-owned enterprise, following an executive order that the Trump administration issued.

On November 12, 2020, the Trump administration issued an executive order banning the U.S. investment in Chinese companies that have a Chinese military background or that the military controls. This order went into effect on January 12 this year. Nine Chinese companies, including Xiaomi, Luokung, and Commercial Aircraft of China, have been included in the sanctions list.

Xiaomi argued that it has nothing to do with the Chinese military, and filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Treasury in the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia. The lawsuit argues that their decision to include Xiaomi on the sanctions list was procedurally unfair and they seek to have these decisions withdrawn.

However, the public information suggests that Xiaomi does have a close relationship with the Chinese military. The founder Lei Jun himself is a PLA veteran. Lei is also an investor in the Yinhe Space Company, whose chief scientist is closely involved in military equipment and technology development.

Source: Voice of America, March 5, 2021
https://www.voachinese.com/a/ftse-russell-to-delete-luokun-tech-fromindexes-20210305/5803364.html

The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence is an independent Commission that was established on August 13, 2018, pursuant to Section 1051 of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (P.L. 115-232). Its purpose is “to consider the methods and means necessary to advance the development of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and associated technologies in order to address comprehensively the national security and defense needs of the United States.” It recently issued its final report after two years of study.

The bipartisan commission of 15 technologists, national security professionals, business executives, and academic leaders met recently. The letter from the chair, Eric Schmidt, the former Google CEO, “is delivering an uncomfortable message: America is not prepared to defend or compete in the AI era. This is the tough reality we must face. It is this reality that demands comprehensive, whole-of-nation action.”

“The letter highlights the threat and competition from China. “But we must win the AI competition that is intensifying strategic competition with China. China’s plans, resources, and progress should concern all Americans. It is an AI peer in many areas and an AI leader in some applications. We take seriously China’s ambition to surpass the United States as the world’s AI leader within a decade.”

The report, “presents an integrated national strategy to reorganize the government, reorient the nation, and rally our closest allies and partners to defend and compete in the coming era of AI-accelerated competition and conflict. It is a two-pronged approach. Part I ‘Defending America in the AI Era,’ outlines the stakes, explains what the United States must do to defend against the spectrum of AI-related threats, and recommends how the U.S. government can responsibly use AI technologies to protect the American people and our interests. Part II, ‘Winning the Technology Competition,’ addresses the critical elements of the AI competition and recommends actions the government must take to promote AI innovation to improve national competitiveness and protect critical U.S. advantages.”

Recommendations for defending America in the AI Era include:

Defend against emerging AI-enabled threats to America’s free and open society
Prepare for future warfare
Manage risks associated with AI-enabled and autonomous weapons
Transform national intelligence
Scale up digital talent in government
Establish justified confidence in AI systems
Present a democratic model of AI use for national security

To win the technology competition, the report suggests:

Organize a White House–led strategy for technology competition
Win the global talent competition
Accelerate AI innovation at home
Implement comprehensive intellectual property (IP) policies and regimes
Build a resilient domestic base for designing and fabricating microelectronics
Protect America’s technology advantages
Build a favorable international technology order
Win the associated technologies competitions

The report expresses a deep sense of urgency and proposed, “By 2025, the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community must be AI-ready.”

Source: National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence

2021 Final Report

On Thursday March 4, the Senate approved by unanimous consent a bill that would increase oversight of Confucius Institutes, China-funded cultural centers that operate on university campuses.

The bill will cut federal funding to a university or college unless its Confucius Institute on campus complies with stipulated provisions, including academic freedom, prohibition of the application of any foreign law, and granting full managerial authority of the Confucius Institute to the university.

The bill, introduced by Sen. John Kennedy, R-LA, will next be sent to the House for consideration. Original cosponsors include Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Rogers Marshall (R-KS), and Thom Tillis (R-NC).

On August 13, 2020, the Department of State under the Trump administration designated the Confucius Institute U.S. Center (CIUS), which serves as the Washington D.C.-based de facto headquarters of the Confucius Institute network, as a foreign mission of the People’s Republic of China.

In October, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos jointly sent letters to the chief state school officers to warn that K-12 classrooms and universities nationwide are being targeted by the Chinese Communist Party’s influence operations, including the presence of Confucius Institutes on campus. “It may come as a surprise to many educators that hundreds of U.S. schools make use of a curriculum developed by an authoritarian government and taught by teachers who are vetted, supplied, and paid by that same government, in partnership with American schools and school districts. A review by the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs found that approval from an institution affiliated with the PRC’s Ministry of Education is generally required when filling teaching positions associated with Confucius Classrooms.”

The American Association of University Professors, or AAUP, released a report in 2014 that recommended colleges take a deeper look at curricula and agendas brought forth in the classroom.

“Confucius Institutes function as an arm of the Chinese state and are allowed to ignore academic freedom,” the statement said, also highlighting a lack of transparency. “Most agreements establishing Confucius Institutes feature nondisclosure clauses and unacceptable concessions to the political aims and practices of the government of China. Specifically, North American universities permit Confucius Institutes to advance a state agenda in the recruitment and control of academic staff, in the choice of curriculum, and in the restriction of debate.”

Source: Congress.gov
https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/590/text
AAUP
https://www.aaup.org/report/confucius-institutes