Democrats Warn Trump on China Tech Pause

US China

Democratic lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have criticised the Trump administration’s decision to pause several technology security measures targeting China, warning the move could undermine national security.

In a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, senior Democrats Gregory Meeks and Sydney Kamlager-Dove described the decision as “troubling”, suggesting it prioritises stabilising ties with Beijing over safeguarding American interests.

The lawmakers pointed specifically to the shelving of a proposed ban on China Telecom’s U.S. operations, as well as potential restrictions on routers made by TP-Link and the American internet businesses of China Unicom and China Mobile.

They also questioned whether officials had redirected scrutiny away from China in assessing foreign technology threats, and requested a formal briefing on the national security implications of the decisions.

Trade Truce Driving Policy?

The criticism comes amid growing concern among Democrats that the administration is easing pressure on Beijing following a trade truce agreed between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping last October.

Additional measures reportedly put on hold include restrictions on Chinese electric trucks and buses, as well as limits on Chinese equipment used in U.S. data centres.

Diplomatic Balancing Act

The policy shift also coincides with Trump’s expected visit to China between March 31 and April 2, where he is set to meet Xi in a high-stakes engagement between the world’s two largest economies.

While the administration has not publicly responded to the concerns, the debate highlights a widening divide in Washington over how to balance economic diplomacy with national security in managing US-China relations.

(with inputs from Reuters)

Source link

Visited 1 times, 1 visit(s) today

Related Article

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - JANUARY 09: BYD YangWang U8 luxury plug-in hybrid suv on display at the AutoSalon press preview on January 09, 2026 in Brussels, Belgium. The 102nd Brussels Motor Show has firmly established itself on the international calendar, featuring over 60 car brands and more than 20 motorcycle brands, and visited by over 270,000 people. (Photo by Sjoerd van der Wal/Getty Images)

Tesla Europe sales tumble 17% in January as China’s BYD soars

Tesla’s (TSLA) Europe woes are only getting worse, just as Chinese rival BYD’s (BYDDY) fortunes soar there. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), Tesla electric vehicle registrations (a proxy for sales) in Europe fell to just 8,075 units in January, a 17% drop compared to a year ago. Meanwhile, total EV registrations in

Simon Calder’s Travel

China hails longest lunar new year holiday for tourism boost

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email China‘s recent nine-day Lunar New Year holiday has delivered a significant boost to domestic travel and consumer spending, successfully fulfilling government hopes that an extended break would encourage households to explore,

Image: JAPAN-POLITICS

China imposes export controls on 20 Japanese entities to curb ‘remilitarization’

BEIJING — China has prohibited the export of dual-use items to 20 Japanese entities that it says supply Japan’s military, the commerce ministry said Tuesday, in the latest escalation of a dispute with Tokyo. China is using its influence over supply chains to ratchet up pressure on Tokyo even after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who

Illustration of Person in the News Xu Yangitan sitting in front of a rack of clothing with his laptop in front of him. His face is dark as a lamp behind his back is illuminating the screen of his laptop.

Shein founder emerges from shadows to hail Chinese roots

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The mysterious founder of fast-fashion giant Shein has used his first major public appearance to stress the company’s roots in China’s southern Guangdong province and to hail communist and government officials for their support in

ET logo

China military purge taking toll on command and readiness, study finds

China’s ongoing military corruption purges are leaving serious deficiencies in its command structure and are likely to have hampered the readiness of its rapidly modernising armed forces, a leading defence research centre said on Tuesday. The purges are likely to be incomplete, even though they have so far ranged across its supreme Central Military Commission,

Humanoid robots made by China's EngineAI showcase their boxing capabilities during the Consumer Electronics Show held in Las Vegas on Jan. 7, 2026. [YONHAP]

Korea lags China in advanced manufacturing industry, chip tech an exception

Published: 24 Feb. 2026, 17:03 Updated: 24 Feb. 2026, 17:25 Humanoid robots made by China’s EngineAI showcase their boxing capabilities during the Consumer Electronics Show held in Las Vegas on Jan. 7, 2026. [YONHAP]   China has surpassed Korea in terms of competitiveness in most advanced manufacturing industries, except for memory chip technologies, a local

China's science museums receive over 3.5 mln visitors during Spring Festival holiday

China’s science museums receive over 3.5 mln visitors during Spring Festival holiday

Science and technology museums across China welcomed over 3.5 million visits during the 2026 Spring Festival holiday, according to preliminary statistics released by the China Science and Technology Museum. Chinese New Year-themed special exhibitions and interactive activities featuring robots made science museums a popular choice among holiday tourists, particularly families with children, during the nine-day

ET logo

China acts against 40 Japanese entities over military ties

China’s commerce ministry took action against 40 Japanese companies and entities on Tuesday, citing national security concerns over their military ties. It imposed export controls on 20 entities, including Mitsubishi and the Japanese space agency, accusing them of helping to enhance Japan’s military capabilities.The ministry added a further 20 Japanese entities, including Subaru, to a

Panama seizes two key ports from Hong Kong group amid U.S.-China canal dispute

Panama seizes two key ports from Hong Kong group amid U.S.-China canal dispute

Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison said Tuesday that Panama authorities had threatened its employees with criminal prosecution if they defied orders to leave two strategic canal ports at the center of a legal battle that has embroiled Beijing and Washington. CK Hutchison said Panama’s decision to cancel key port contracts and grant temporary licenses to

China's DeepSeek trained AI model on Nvidia's best chip despite US ban, official says

China’s DeepSeek trained AI model on Nvidia’s best chip despite US ban, official says

Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s latest AI model, set to be released as soon ‌as next week, was trained on Nvidia’s most advanced AI chip, the Blackwell, a senior Trump ​administration official said on Monday, in what could represent a violation of U.S. export controls. The U.S. believes ⁠DeepSeek will remove the technical indicators that might

After OpenAI, Anthropic warn US government on China; say Chinese AI models are stealing our data and the speed ...

After OpenAI, Anthropic warn US government on China; say Chinese AI models are stealing our data and the speed …

AI giant Anthropic has accused three of China’s largest AI labs — DeepSeek, MiniMax, and Moonshot AI of ‘illicitly’ using its Claude model outputs to train their own systems. According to a report by Business Insider, in a statement Anthropic said that these Chinese albs orchestrated industrial-scale distillation campaigns, creating roughly 24,000 fraudulent Claude accounts

Apps displayed on phone within an "AI" folder.

China AI labs accused of stealing from Anthropic’s Claude chatbot

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! FIRST ON FOX: As Washington tightens export controls to preserve America’s artificial intelligence edge, top AI firm Anthropic alleges three China-based AI laboratories found another way to access advanced U.S. capabilities. The U.S. firm alleges DeepSeek, Moonshot AI and MiniMax used roughly 24,000 fraudulent accounts to generate

Map Thumbnail

China & Taiwan Update, February 20, 2026

Toplines The United States is reportedly hesitating over whether to fulfill its next arms sales to Taiwan out of concern that it could derail US President Donald Trump’s upcoming visit to Beijing. Suspending the sales would risk emboldening the CCP and encouraging it to pursue further concessions from the United States, however. In a phone

Licensed merchandise sales expected to exceed RMB 1 bn

Greater Bay Chicken boosts Spring Festival tourism: Licensed merchandise sales expected to exceed RMB 1 bn. (DDN) The mascots of the 15th National Games and Paralympics — “Xi Yangyang” and “Le Rongrong,” affectionately nicknamed “Greater Bay Chicken” — have become a cultural tourism sensation across the Greater Bay Area during the Spring Festival. The mascots

US says China ‘massively expanded’ nuclear arsenal

US says China ‘massively expanded’ nuclear arsenal

Chinese ambassador Shen Jian said his country ‘firmly opposes the constant distortion and smearing of its nuclear policy by certain countries’. (AFP pic) GENEVA: The US on Monday accused China of dramatically swelling its nuclear arsenal, and doubled down on claims that Beijing had conducted secret nuclear tests, demanding again it be part of any

House Democrats Blast Trump’s Pause on China Tech Security Measures

House Democrats Blast Trump’s Pause on China Tech Security Measures

Democratic lawmakers are criticizing the Trump administration for halting technology security actions targeting Chinese companies, calling it a threat to national security. The pause includes suspending bans on China Telecom operations and TP-Link router sales in the U.S. Congressional Democrats are condemning the Trump administration’s decision to halt several technology security initiatives targeting Chinese companies,

China's 2026 Tariff Schedule Targets High-Tech, Healthcare Sectors

Supreme Court Tariff Ruling – Impact on US-China Trade Truce

A Supreme Court tariff ruling has invalidated Trump’s use of an emergency statute to impose sweeping import duties on trade partners, eliminating the 10 percent “fentanyl” and reciprocal tariffs on Chinese goods. Trump has responded by implementing a 150-day 15 percent global tariff and has vowed to invoke other laws to implement permanent duties in

Chinese envoy invites PM to visit China

Chinese envoy invites PM to visit China

Chinese envoy invites PM to visit China Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen today paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at the Cabinet Division in the Bangladesh Secretariat. Photo : PMO DHAKA, Feb 23, 2026 (BSS) – Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen has invited Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to visit China

0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x