China: USA considering sanctions for products manufactured with US software
Following further Chinese export controls on rare earths, the Trump administration is discussing its response: a drastic escalation is on the table.
(Image: ymgerman/Shutterstock.com)
In response to recent Chinese export restrictions on rare earths, the US administration is considering restricting the supply of products to China that contain or were manufactured with US software. This is reported by the news agency Reuters, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has reportedly confirmed that all options would be on the table. The step under discussion would in any case be a dramatic escalation in the trade dispute between the USA and China; such export restrictions could severely disrupt global trade with the People's Republic. It would be unclear how the Trump administration could implement them, but it is clear that US software is extremely widespread.
"Everything imaginable is made with US software"
Reuters points out several times that the possible step is currently only being discussed and no implementation has been decided. It is possible that it will not happen at all. But the threat alone is likely to be taken seriously in the People's Republic. "Everything imaginable is made with software from the USA," the news agency quotes an anonymous source. Such sanctions could therefore be extremely broad. Emily Kilcrease, a former employee of the US Department of Commerce, has described the recourse to software as obvious, even if such sanctions would be extremely difficult to implement and have negative consequences for US industry. The threat should therefore only be voiced if one is also prepared to act.
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The US administration's considerations follow Chinese export controls against the remaining five rare earths from two weeks ago. They are all central to the production of modern equipment, and China even wants to prevent them from being traded between third countries without authorization, even if no Chinese company is involved. With this step, Beijing is following the usual practice of the USA, which regularly implements sanctions that must also be observed outside the country. In return, US sanctions based on software would be drastic, but not unprecedented: such sanctions have already been imposed against Russia. However, the country is of much less importance to the global economy than China.
(mho)
