Joe Cash and Bernard Orr
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s commerce minister Wang Wentao urged Japan to end semiconductor export controls, calling it a “wrong act” that “severely violates” the international economy. China’s latest condemnation of export restrictions came during Wang Yi’s talks with Japanese Trade Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura in May in Detroit, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) APEC) meeting.
Japan and the Netherlands agreed in January to match U.S. export controls, which will limit the sale of some chipmaking tools to China and restrict exports to its neighbors 23 type of semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
The U.S. imposed restrictions last year aimed at slowing China’s work on supercomputers that could be used to develop nuclear weapons systems and artificial intelligence systems.
Japan did not single out China in its statement on export control, saying only that it is fulfilling its responsibility to contribute to international peace and stability.
China’s Commerce Ministry statement on Monday also said that, however, China “is willing to work with Japan to jointly advance practical cooperation in key economic and trade areas.”
On Friday, Nishimura and the U.S. Minister of Commerce Gina Raimondo met and both sides agreed to deepen cooperation in the field of research and cooperation.
Wang Yi also met with Raimondo and U.S. Trade Representative Kathleen Day during the summit, criticizing the U.S. economy and its trade policies against China, including The U.S.-led Indo-Pacific economic framework, which excludes China, aims to provide a U.S.-centric alternative to its influence.
The U.S., Japan and other developed countries that belong to the Group of Seven (G7) nations agreed this month to “reduce risk” but did not decouple from China, reducing their exposure to trade in everything from chips to mining. Exposure to the world’s second largest economy.
