China slams US for weaponizing technological issues

ANKARA

China slammed the US for weaponizing technological issues, arguing that setting obstacles serves no one's interests, according to local media on Friday.

Reacting to Washington's new restriction on the export of advanced technologies, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said that Beijing always opposed politicizing and weaponizing economic, trade, scientific, and technological issues.

"…arbitrarily setting obstacles to normal economic and trade exchanges serves no one's interests," state-run China Daily quoted Mao as saying.

Her reaction came after the US Department of Commerce had announced that Washington would further restrict exports of technologies such as quantum computing and semiconductor manufacturing.

On Thursday, the US Department of Commerce published an interim final rule (IFR) implementing controls on critical and emerging technologies that have reached broad technical agreement among their international partners.

"This IFR includes controls related to quantum computing, semiconductor manufacturing, and other advanced technologies. Today’s action strengthens our international relationships with like-minded countries and ensures that U.S. export controls keep pace with rapidly advancing technologies that pose serious threats to our national security when in the wrong hands," the department said in a statement.

In recent years, Washington also imposed restrictions on the export of advanced chips to China. In response, Beijing imposed export restrictions on raw materials used in manufacturing chips.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid