By Improve US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo arrives in Beijing late for a four-day visit aim at boosting business ties between the world’s two largest economies and declaring that the United States’ national security measures should not be dispute.
“If you want to put a tagline on this trip and mission, it’s protecting what we have to do and promoting it as best we can,” Raimondo told reporters on Friday before leaving for China.
Relations have been straine as the United States worked with allies to block China’s access to advanced semiconductors, while Beijing restricted shipments from leading chip firm Micron Technology and raided and fined US firm Mintz Group $1.5 million for conducting “unapproved statistical work.”
Raimondo, who was greeted by Chinese Ministry of Commerce official Lin Feng, will hold bilateral meetings with officials on Monday and Tuesday in Beijing before he leaves for Shanghai. He will be accompanied by US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns.
Raimondo spoke with President Joe Biden on Thursday about his visit and his message was that increased dialogue with China can defuse tensions.
Republican members of Congress criticized the possibility that Raimondo would form a working group with China during the visit to discuss controls on US semiconductor exports.
Raimondo did not confirm plans for setting up any working group but emphasized that he would tell Chinese officials “when it comes to national security, we don’t negotiate. We don’t make concessions. We don’t compromise.”
The United States uses government incentives and tax policies to cut American businesses out of China’s supply chains and increase production of American semiconductors.
Chinese Ambassador to the United States, Xie Feng, who met Raimondo last week, said China strives for “mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation”.
The White House this month began banning some US investments in sensitive technology in China and plans to soon complete curbs on exports of advanced semiconductors implemented in October.
Raimondo, the fourth top US official to visit China recently, is the first commerce secretary to make the trip in seven years.
He spoke to more than 100 senior business leaders ahead of his visit and vowed to address their concerns.
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