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– On August 18, China’s state media reported renewed interest from Chinese investors into extraction operations for Afghanistan’s copper, oil, and lithium deposits.
– On August 17, Hua Chunying, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, slammed the U.S. in a press conference for “leaving an awful mess of unrest, division and broken families” in Afghanistan.
– On August 16, China’s official news agency Xinhua dubbed the U.S.’ “hegemonic policy” the cause of “too many human tragedies” while the Global Times mocked the U.S. for repeatedly “abandon[ing] its allies” going back to the French Revolution.
– On August 16, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi chastized Secretary of State Antony Blinken over the phone for the “hasty U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.” Wang also criticized the U.S.’ “double standards on the issue of counter-terrorism” in Xinjiang, describing its disregard for Uyghur terrorist groups as an “obstacle…to Afghan-related cooperation.”
– On August 12, U.S. intelligence sources confirmed that CCP officials are prepared to formalize the burgeoning Chinese relationship with the Taliban if Kabul falls.
Associated News References:
“China sifts opportunity from ashes of US Afghan project,” AFP, August 18
“China denounces ‘awful mess’ left by US in Afghanistan,” The Straits Times, August 17
“Chinese state media rips U.S. over chaotic Afghanistan exit,” NBC News, August 17
“China’s foreign minister slams ‘hurried’ U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan,” Reuters, August 16 [Paywall]
“China Preparing to Recognize Taliban if Kabul Falls: Sources,” U.S. News, August 12
– On August 19, in an interview with ABC News, President Biden sought to restore allies’ confidence in U.S. commitments following his swift withdrawal from Afghanistan calling this case “not even comparable” with Taiwan, South Korea, or Japan.
– On August 17, Chiu Chui-cheng, Deputy Minister of Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, attempted to dispel doubts surrounding U.S. commitments to Taiwan, saying that “we trust the U.S. knows Taiwan’s strategic importance.”
– On August 17, Senator John Cornyn incorrectly tweeted that there were 30,000 American troops based in Taiwan, prompting Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the Global Times, to reply “the senator is not confused, and he wants to test our response. My answer to him is war.”
– On August 16, the Global Times published an article titled ‘Afghanistan today, Taiwan tomorrow?’ that argued that “the failure of the U.S. in Afghanistan should serve as a warning to the secessionists in the island.”
– On August 12, Taipei announced its intention to join in Biden’s proposed ‘Summit for Democracy’ in December which mainland Chinese analysts argue poses a threat to the U.S.’ policy of ‘strategic ambiguity.’
Associated News References:
“Biden argues allies can trust US despite botched Afghanistan withdrawal,” New York Post, August 19
“Taiwanese Official Says Island’s Freedom Key to Stable Indo-Pacific,” USNI News, August 17
“Fact Check: Are There 30,000 U.S. Troops in Taiwan?,” Newsweek, August 17
“Afghan chaos left by US should be a warning to Taiwan: Chinese media,” South China Morning Post, August 16 [Paywall]
“Biden democracy summit invitation to Taiwan ‘risks crisis in China-US ties’,” South China Morning Post, August 13 [Paywall]
– On August 24, Vice President Kamala Harris sharply criticized Chinese “coercion” and “intimidation” in the South China Sea in a speech delivered during her August 20-26 trip through Southeast Asia.
– On August 21, President Biden nominated Foreign Service veteran Nicholas Burns to be U.S. Ambassador to China.
– On August 13, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman told the Lithuanian Foreign Minister that the U.S. was “resolute in our solidarity” against China’s “coercive behavior” after Lithuania’s decision to establish ties with Taiwan.
– On August 12, Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Qin Gang met with Deputy Secretary Sherman. The officials reportedly built on topics discussed during Deputy Secretary Sherman’s July trip to China and Amb. Qin emphasized Taiwan as “the most important and sensitive issue in Sino-U.S. relations.”
– On August 11, it was reported that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is considering a trip to China in the coming months to review Trump-era tariffs and general U.S.-China trade policy.
Associated News References:
“Harris rebukes China in major speech on Indo-Pacific,” Associated Press, August 24
“In shift, Biden taps career diplomat, not politician, for ambassador to China,” Reuters, August 21 [Paywall]
“Vice President Kamala Harris to Focus on Countering China on Southeast Asia Trip,” The Wall Street Journal, August 20 [Paywall]
“Sherman stresses U.S. support for Lithuania against ‘coercive’ China,” Reuters, August 13 [Paywall]
“China’s new U.S. envoy stresses importance of Taiwan in first high-level meeting,” Reuters, August 13 [Paywall]
“US-China relations: envoys ‘aim to build’ on Wendy Sherman’s Tianjin talks,” South China Morning Post, August 12 [Paywall]
“Janet Yellen Weighs Visit to China, Her First as Treasury Secretary,” Bloomberg, August 11 [Paywall]
– On August 20, China’s state-run Economic Daily published an op-ed which argued that the $1.5 trillion in stock losses from the tech crackdown will be recouped by long-term growth in the digital economy.
– On August 20, China approved an extensive data privacy law that is expected to restrict data collection by private companies—notably not the state—when it comes into effect on November 1.
– On August 17, China’s antitrust watchdog released new draft rules for dot-com companies which would severely limit the exploitation of user data and fraudulent reviews to influence customers.
– On August 16, China’s Ministry of Education scrapped 286 joint programs with foreign universities.
– On August 16, corporate records were released indicating that the Chinese government quietly secured a stake and board seat in ByteDance—the parent company of Tik Tok, Douyin, and Toutiao—in April.
– On August 12, the Chinese government published a five-year plan revealing their intent to draft new legislation to regulate important sectors such as technology, education, and healthcare.
Associated News References:
“China’s crackdown on Big Tech is a short-term cost for long-term health: state media,” South China Morning Post, August 20 [Paywall]
“China Passes One of the World’s Strictest Data-Privacy Laws,” The Wall Street Journal, August 20 [Paywall]
“China to tighten competition rules for internet groups,” Financial Times, August 17 [Paywall]
“China kills almost 300 partnerships with elite foreign universities in places like New York, London and Hong Kong, after private tutoring ban,” South China Morning Post, August 16 [Paywall]
“Beijing Tightens Grip on ByteDance by Quietly Taking Stake, China Board Seat,” The Information, August 16 [Paywall]
“China unveils five-year plan to strengthen control of economy,” Financial Times, August 12 [Paywall]
– On August 24, Chinese naval forces began a series of naval exercises in the South China Sea. These drills will last until Thursday when another set of naval exercises—between the U.S. and members of the Quad alliance—will begin off the coast of Guam.
– On August 17, Defense News published an interview with Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall where he stated that he wants the U.S. to counter its rival’s modernization by developing military technologies that “scare China” and to focus on technologies with “specific operational return on investment.”
– On August 17, China carried out an air exercise near Taiwan which Taiwanese officials believe to be a ‘capturing air supremacy’ drill, intended to gather signals from U.S. and Japanese aircraft and “paralyse reinforcing aircraft including F-35s in a war.”
– On August 11, the U.S. Navy released a translated Chinese government research paper indicating China’s interest in emulating the U.S.’ missile-armed Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) which the paper describes as “a powerful tool.”
Associated News References:
“China holds naval drills ahead of US-led Quad exercise off the coast of Guam,” South China Morning Post, August 24 [Paywall]
“New US Air Force secretary to shake up Advanced Battle Management Program,” Defense News, August 19
“The new US Air Force secretary wants to ‘scare China’,” Defense News, August 17
“China holds assault drills near Taiwan after ‘provocations’,” Reuters, August 17 [Paywall]
“Chinese See U.S. Littoral Combat Ship as ‘Powerful Tool’ in Future Distributed Conflicts,” USNI News, August 11
“Beijing’s anti-sanctions law for Hong Kong: why is it being postponed? What do we know and don’t know about the delay?” South China Morning Post, August 21 [Paywall]
“Huawei CFO’s Extradition Hearing Ends as She Awaits Ruling,” Bloomberg, August 18 [Paywall]
“Head of WHO Team Investigating Origins of Covid-19 Calls For Closer Look at China Lab,” The Wall Street Journal, August 12 [Paywall]
“NOAA releases report identifying seven countries engaged in IUU,” Seafood Source, August 12
August 17 hosted by Center for Strategic & International Studies
August 17 hosted by SupChina
August 23 hosted by Asia Global Institute
August 24 hosted by Center for Strategic & International Studies
August 25 hosted by SupChina
August 26 hosted by Wilson Center
August 26-27 hosted by LACHINET – Latinx China Network
August 28 hosted by National Bureau of Asian Research
September 2 hosted by Center for Strategic & International Studies
September 9 hosted by The Center for Innovation Policy at Duke Law
Monday, September 13, 2021
9:30am – 11:00am EDT
The digital frontier is an arena of immense opportunity as major economies race to build a smart digital economy fueled by a range of innovations such as 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing and the internet of things (IoT). The worldwide market for new digital technologies is expected to reach into the trillions of dollars by 2025 and significant domestic growth potential is expected to reside in these markets. The digital frontier is also an arena of growing challenges as citizens, businesses and governments fret over the loss of control over their data, the potential theft of their intellectual property (IP), and their ability to shape and enforce legislation in the digital environment. Compounding these challenges is the increasingly bitter U.S.-China geopolitical rivalry, including in the digital space where both parties have adopted a variety of heavy-handed approaches to protect data and technologies.
The Institute for China-America Studies Trade ‘n Technology (TnT) Program is pleased to co-host this event with our partners at the Carter Center. The event will feature global experts who will discuss the immense opportunities and growing challenges of this rapidly evolving digital frontier.
by Sourabh Gupta
August 25, 2021
In its last eight months in office, the Trump administration issued a blizzard of U.S.-China decoupling-related Executive Orders and Rulemaking with a focus on the digital economy and advanced manufacturing sectors. Some were shoddily drafted in haste, leaving the Biden administration to sort through these orders and regulations.
A common feature of the Biden administration’s emerging approach on technology controls is its refusal to be rushed into a hasty rollout of revised policies and rules without broad internal vetting or external stakeholder input. As a result, a few admittedly unsatisfactory Trump-era rules continue to survive on the books during this interim. Thus far, there has been no knee-jerk revocation of a Trump-era rule.
While the Biden administration has reached an internal consensus on a Trump-era technology controls rule, it has implemented a variety of responses. These range from the outright voiding of a deeply compromised Trump-era Executive Order to the methodical stripping-out and revision of deficient provisions within a Trump-era Rule to the amplification – not narrowing-down – of scope and coverage of a Trump-era Executive Order.
By-and-large, the overarching purpose of the Biden administration’s emerging approach to technology controls bears similarities with the Trump team’s approach: It seeks not so much to encourage China to cooperate and abide by rules-based, pro-market standards as it seeks to constrain China’s technological rise.
by Sourabh Gupta
August 19, 2021
The renowned German economist Rudiger Dornbusch once famously quipped that economic crises tended to arrive far more slowly than commonly thought, yet when they did arrive, these crises tend to strike at a speed and intensity that few thought was ordinarily possible. Much the same can be said for the dramatic events of the week of August 15th in Kabul. The Taliban’s march into Kabul was long in coming. Yet when it arrived, it transpired at a scale and intensity that few could have previously imagined…
ICAS has officially released its Maritime Affairs Program (MAP)! The ICAS Maritime Affairs Program gathers, displays, and debates both the historic and the newly developed maritime related issues, including U.S.-China interaction on maritime affairs.
The goal of this program is to inform and stimulate open, fact-based, intellectual discussion on an array of topics including but not limited to international law of the sea, maritime security, fisheries management, shipping, oil and natural gas management, and marine environmental protection.
On Thursday, August 19, 2021, ICAS Senior Fellow Sourabh Gupta discussed the fast-moving events in Afghanistan on RT America’s The News with Rick Sanchez.
On Tuesday, August 17, 2021, ICAS Senior Fellow Sourabh Gupta was quoted by Xinhua News discussing the origins and causes of the U.S. failure in Afghanistan.
The Institute for China-America Studies is an independent nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization dedicated to strengthening the understanding of U.S.-China relations through expert analysis and practical policy solutions.
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