BEIJING: China on Saturday (Oct 8) criticised the latest decision by the United States to tighten export controls that would make it harder for China to obtain and manufacture advanced computing chips, calling it a violation of international economic and trade rules that will “isolate and backfire” on the US.

“Out of the need to maintain its sci-tech hegemony, the US abuses export control measures to maliciously block and suppress Chinese companies,” said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.

“It will not only damage the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies, but also affect American companies’ interests,” she said.

Mao also said that the US “weaponisation and politicisation” of science and technology as well as economic and trade issues will not stop China’s progress.

She was speaking after the US on Friday updated export controls that included adding certain advanced, high-performance computing chips and semiconductor manufacturing equipment to its list, as well as new license requirements for items that would be used in a supercomputer or for semiconductor development in China.

The US said that the export controls were added as part of ongoing efforts to protect US national security and foreign policy interests.

US-China relations have deteriorated in recent years over technology and security issues. The US has implemented a raft of measures and restrictions designed to prevent China from obtaining chip technology, while China has earmarked billions for investment into the production of semiconductors.

The tensions have impacted semiconductor companies in the US and globally which either export chips or manufacture chips in China.

Semiconductor companies such as Nvidia and AMD has seen a 40 per cent decline in stock price over the past year.

“We understand the goal of ensuring national security and urge the US government to implement the rules in a targeted way—and in collaboration with international partners—to help level the playing field and mitigate unintended harm to US innovation,” the Semiconductor Industry Association, which represents US semiconductor industry, said in a statement.

But the pandemic is not the only cause of disruption to trade: China has banned Taiwanese grouper imports since June, citing prohibited chemicals and high levels of other drugs found in the fish. Taiwan said the ban was politically motivated.

China and Hong Kong account for about 40 per cent of Taiwan’s exports. After Pelosi’s visit, China halted imports of Taiwanese citrus fruits and certain fish products. It also suspended the export of natural sand to Taiwan.

Analysts told Bloomberg it is unlikely, however, that China will suspend tech imports such as Taiwanese semiconductors, as it would be “very difficult” to find alternative supplies.

For its part, Taiwan has tried reducing its reliance on the Chinese market by expanding its trade and economic ties with countries such as Japan and the US.

Meantime, for farmers like Pan, who must shoulder the cost of keeping water pumps running and feeding her fish, robust cross-strait business will depend on a “healthy relationship” between both sides. She hopes for that while remaining neutral about unification.

BANGKOK: A United States coast guard cutter conducting patrols as part of an international mission to prevent illegal fishing was recently unable to get clearance for a scheduled port call in the Solomon Islands, according to reports, an incident that comes amid growing concerns of Chinese influence on the Pacific nation.

The cutter Oliver Henry was taking part in Operation Island Chief monitoring fishing activities in the Pacific, which came to a close on Friday (Aug 26), when it sought to make a scheduled stop on Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, to refuel and re-provision, Coast Guard Lieutenant Kristin Kam told the Stars and Stripes military newspaper.

There was no response from the Solomon Islands’ government for diplomatic clearance for the vessel to land, however, so the Oliver Henry diverted to Papua New Guinea, Kam said.

She declined to specify when the incident occurred, and the Coast Guard did not immediately respond to emails or calls from The Associated Press for comment.

In a statement, however, the Coast Guard said the Oliver Henry had arrived in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, on Tuesday “following a patrol in parts of the Coral Sea and the Solomon Islands.”

Britain’s Royal Navy did not comment directly on reports that the HMS Spey, also taking part in Operation Island Chief, was also denied a port call in the Solomon Islands.

“Ships’ programs are under constant review, and it is routine practice for them to change,” the Royal Navy said in an emailed statement.

“For reasons of operational security we do not discuss details. The Royal Navy looks forward to visiting the Solomon Islands at a later date.”

During Operation Island Chief, the US, Australia, Britain and New Zealand provided support through aerial and surface surveillance for Pacific island nations participating in the operation, including the Solomon Islands.

SINGAPORE: Tech giants Twitter and Meta in recent weeks removed social media accounts promoting pro-Western narratives that supported the United States and its allies while opposing countries like China and Russia, according to a report released on Wednesday (Aug 24). 

The joint study by the Stanford Internet Observatory – a programme at Stanford University studying the abuse of the Internet – and social media analytics firm Graphika points to the first time covert pro-Western influence operations have been identified and taken down on social media.

“With few exceptions, the study of modern influence operations has overwhelmingly focused on activity linked to authoritarian regimes in countries such as Russia, China, and Iran, with recent growth in research on the integral role played by private entities,” the report stated. 

Data provided by Twitter and Facebook parent firm Meta to the researchers showed a series of covert campaigns that ran over a period of almost five years on various social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

An “interconnected web” of accounts on those platforms used deceptive tactics to promote pro-Western narratives in the Middle East and Central Asia. 

Twitter listed the campaigns’ “presumptive countries of origin” as the US and Great Britain, while Meta said the “country of origin” was the US. 

Both firms did not share technical details of their investigations, and did not publicly attribute the activity to any entity or organisation. 

‘HEAVILY CRITICISED’ RUSSIA

In July and August, Twitter and Meta removed two “overlapping” sets of accounts for violating their platforms’ terms of service. 

Twitter said the accounts violated their policies on “platform manipulation and spam”, while Meta said the accounts engaged in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour”. 

After the accounts were taken down, both companies provided “portions of the activities” to Graphika and the Stanford Internet Observatory for further analysis.

Twitter provided data which covered more than 299,000 tweets by 146 accounts between March 2012 and February this year, showing activity linked to covert campaigns of unclear origins.

These covert campaigns were also represented in a Meta dataset of 39 Facebook profiles, 16 pages and two groups; as well as 26 Instagram accounts active from 2017 to July this year. 

WASHINGTON: The United States has added seven China-related entities, mostly related to aerospace, to its export control list, citing national security and foreign policy concerns, according to a US Commerce Department notice published online on Tuesday (Aug 23).

According to a notification posted to the Federal Register, suppliers of US materials or services to these entities will need a license before shipping any goods.

The seven entities added to the list are:

• China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation 9th Academy 771 Research Institute
• China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation 9th Academy 772 Research Institute
• China Academy of Space Technology 502 Research Institute
• China Academy of Space Technology 513 Research Institute
• China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 43 Research Institute
• China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 58 Research Institute
• Zhuhai Orbital Control Systems

Commerce said the entities were added for “acquiring and attempting to acquire US-origin items in support of China’s military modernisation efforts.”

China, which claims democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory despite the Taipei government’s strong objections, has been carrying out war games and drills near Taiwan since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a two-day visit to Taipei earlier this month.

It is also strongly opposed to trade talks between the US and Taiwan, citing its “One China” policy which it says is a prerequisite for Taiwan’s participation in economic cooperation with foreign countries.

TOKYO: Japan is considering the deployment of 1,000 long-range cruise missiles to boost its counterattack capability against China, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Sunday (Aug 21).

The missiles would be existing arms modified to extend their range from 100km to 1,000km, the daily said, citing government sources.

The arms, launched by ships or aircraft, would be stationed mainly around the southern Nansei islands and capable of reaching the coastal areas of North Korea and China, the Yomiuri said.

Representatives from Japan’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.

Japan, which interprets its war-renouncing postwar constitution to mean it may use its military only for self-defense, has stepped up its military spending and taken a more assertive strategy in recent years.

But it has refrained from deploying long-range missiles, among its limits on weapons that can strike targets on foreign soil.

Regional tensions ratcheted up this month after a visit by Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the United States House of Representatives, to Taiwan, which is self-ruled but claimed by China.

Beijing launched missiles near Taiwan and into Japan’s exclusive economic zone.