On Sunday, April 21, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo, stated that the chips used in the Huawei Mate 60 Pro smartphone are not as advanced as U.S. chips, with Chinese chip technology lagging behind the U.S. by many years. She also discussed U.S. restrictions on chip exports to China and global restrictions on Russia obtaining chips and technology for use in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
In 2019, citing national security risks, the Trump administration placed Huawei on the U.S. trade restriction list. However, Huawei released a new smartphone in August last year utilizing advanced chips, causing concern among industry insiders and the U.S. government. The chip in the Huawei Mate 60 Pro smartphone is viewed domestically as a symbol of technological revival by Chinese nationalists.
When Huawei launched this phone, Raimondo was visiting China at the time. In an interview with CBS News’ “60 Minutes” on Sunday, Raimondo countered this viewpoint.
She said, “This tells me that export controls are working because this (Huawei phone) chip is not as good… it lags behind our U.S. chips by several years.”
“We have the most advanced semiconductor technology in the world. China does not,” she said.
Deputy Secretary of Commerce Alan Estevez stated that chip manufacturing partners of Huawei, such as SMIC, “might” have violated U.S. laws. The Biden administration is considering blacklisting Chinese companies that are suspected of helping Huawei produce chips.
For years, the U.S. government has been working to prevent China from obtaining advanced semiconductor chips and the tools needed to manufacture these chips, out of concerns that they could be used to bolster China’s military capabilities.
Huawei is a focal point of the U.S.-China tech war, but U.S. suppliers, including Intel, have received export licenses worth billions of dollars to continue selling products to Huawei. Huawei introduced its first artificial intelligence laptop with Intel chips earlier this month, sparking anger among Republicans towards a tough stance on China.
When asked if she is being tough enough on such matters, Raimondo emphasized, “I am asking businesses and everyone to take responsibility.”
She said on “60 Minutes”, “When I tell them they can’t sell semiconductors to China, they don’t like it, but I did it (imposed sanctions).”
While high-end microchips are used in some consumer products, they are also used in nuclear weapons and surveillance systems. “We know they (China) want these chips and our advanced technology to advance their military development,” Raimondo said.
In October 2022, the U.S. implemented export controls to prevent U.S. technology from entering China. These restrictions primarily target advanced semiconductors and chip manufacturing equipment. A year later, the U.S. released further details to tighten export controls on China.
Last year, the Netherlands and Japan took some export control measures against China. Raimondo is pressuring these two countries, along with South Korea and Germany, to further restrict China’s access to foreign technology.
Last week, President Biden reiterated the need to ensure that the most advanced technology and computer chips developed and invented in the U.S. are not exported to China for purposes that could jeopardize U.S. national security.
“They cannot be shipped to China because it would harm our national security,” he said. “When I talk to Xi Jinping, he asks, ‘Why?’ I say, ‘Because you would use it for various wrong reasons, so you won’t get those advanced computer chips.'”
On the other hand, 90% of advanced chips are manufactured in Taiwan, which has been under threat from China in recent years.
“This is a problem,” Raimondo said. “It is a risk. It makes us vulnerable.”
“We let our manufacturing base in this country gradually decline in search of cheaper labor and cheaper capital in Asia, and now we are at this point,” she said. “We have been pursuing profits rather than national security.”
To address this issue, the U.S. Department of Commerce is responsible for disbursing over $100 billion in grants and loans to promote domestic semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S., while rallying allies to curb China’s chip manufacturing and artificial intelligence ambitions.
Last month, Raimondo announced in Arizona that the first bonus for manufacturing cutting-edge chips in the U.S. was awarded to Intel. The Biden administration stated that it would provide Intel with up to $8.5 billion in direct funds and $11 billion in loans for computer chip facility construction in Arizona, Ohio, New Mexico, and Oregon.
She also awarded an additional $13 billion in incentive funds to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Samsung in South Korea, allowing them to produce the world’s most advanced chips in Arizona and Texas.
Raimondo stated that the global chip war intensified following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The U.S. Department of Commerce expanded export controls to prevent the sale of U.S. semiconductor technology used in drones, missiles, and tanks to Russia.
During a congressional hearing in 2022, Raimondo stated that Russia had begun using chips used in dishwashers and refrigerators in its military equipment. Over two years have passed since the war started, and Russians are still struggling to address the chip issue.
“Our export controls have indeed hampered their (Russia’s) combat capability, making the war more difficult,” she said.
“We are doing everything we can every minute of every day to enforce this,” she said.