Trump Seen Prioritizing Talks with China over Ties with Japan

Washington, Dec. 10 (Jiji Press)–The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump appears to be prioritizing practical interests regarding U.S.-made chips, in a recent move that apparently considers China, while sidelining its ties with Japan, an ally of the United States. On Monday, Trump announced in a social media post that the U.S. government will allow the exports of U.S. semiconductor giant Nvidia Corp.’s H200 artificial intelligence chips to China, saying, “(Chinese) President Xi (Jinping) responded positively!” Both Trump during his first term in office and his immediate predecessor, Joe Biden, had imposed stringent restrictions on chip exports to China due to national security concerns that related technologies may be converted for military use. Keeping a close eye on any technology leaks to the Chinese side, the U.S. government has pressed its allies, notably Japan and the Netherlands, which both have strengths in chip manufacturing equipment, to beef up their export controls. Trump, however, in his latest move allowed U.S. chip exports to China, on the condition that 25 pct of sales revenues go to the U.S. government. Rush Doshi, who served as deputy senior director for China and Taiwan of the U.S. National Security Council under the Biden administration, said, “It is the most significant change on technology policy probably in about seven years.” Michael Horowitz, a senior fellow at the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations, said, “In a world where the Trump administration is willing to export more and more advanced chips to China, and where it’s making clear to allies and partners in other areas that…it’s all about the money…I would be nervous about…the extent to which allies and partners over time whether they will…still be willing to restrict the export of some of those advanced pieces of equipment to China.” Dennis Wilder, a China expert at Georgetown University, said, “The Trump administration owes it to its allies to explain in detail its policy going forward on limiting China’s access to advanced chips.” Trump’s moves come at a time when the Xi administration, angered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent remarks on a potential Taiwan contingency, has been ramping up its pressure on Japan. The Trump administration, however, has been slow to respond to the situation. “Chinese actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability,” a U.S. State Department spokesperson said Tuesday, three days after the Chinese military used radar on Japanese fighter jets. Trump himself has not clarified his stance on the matter. On Tuesday, Daniel Kritenbrink, former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, in his lecture at a think tank, called for the United States to play a role in diffusing tensions between Japan and China. “It is critical, in my view, that Washington and Tokyo remain aligned and that this rapprochement (between the United States and China) does not come at Japan’s expense,” he said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]