Late last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill with overwhelming bipartisan support requiring TikTok’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, to sell off the app or face a ban in the United States. The concerns are ostensibly about security, but the potential ban is also about a lot more than the app itself.
Though notably quiet this year, China’s annual legislative “two sessions” were still helpful in confirming the direction of Beijing’s economic policies under President Xi Jinping. Rather than implement economic reforms, China will double down on manufacturing and exports, a decision that may exacerbate existing trade tensions.
Washington and Beijing have repeatedly stated their desire to prevent their relations from veering into a severe crisis or conflict. One way of doing this is for each side to offer credible assurances that it won’t threaten the most vital interests of the other. Unfortunately, despite some initial efforts, neither side has done so.
In response to the success of Chinese electric vehicle, or EV, exports, the U.S. and Europe have opened investigations into Chinese automakers, focusing on aspects of the competition that are deemed unfair or unsafe. But another reason for concern over imports of Chinese-made EVs is so far neglected: human rights violations.
China’s premier will not hold a press conference following the country’s annual legislative session, ending a three-decades-long practice that was one of the rare times journalists could directly ask questions of a top Chinese leader.