China urges Japan to end export restrictions on chips

BEIJING, May 29 (Reuters) – Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao urged Japan to end semiconductor export controls, calling it a “mistake” that “seriously violated” international economic and trade rules, his ministry said in a statement on Monday .

China̵[ads1]7;s latest condemnation of the export restrictions came during Wang’s talks with Japanese Trade Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura on May 26 at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in Detroit.

Japan, along with the Netherlands, agreed in January to match US export controls that will restrict sales of some chipmaking tools to China, and has placed restrictions on exports of 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to its neighbor.

The United States imposed the restrictions last year to slow China’s work on supercomputers that can be used to develop nuclear weapons systems and artificial intelligence systems.

Japan has not singled out China in its statements on export controls, saying only that it is fulfilling its duty to contribute to international peace and stability.

However, Monday’s statement from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce also said China “is willing to work with Japan to promote practical cooperation in important economic and trade areas.”

On Friday, Nishimura met with US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and the two agreed to deepen cooperation in the research and development of advanced chips and technologies such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence.

Wang also met with Raimondo and US Trade Representative Katherine Tai while at the summit, criticizing US economic and trade policies towards China, including the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework which excludes China and aims to provide a US-centric alternative to its influence.

The United States, Japan and other members of the Group of Seven (G7) advanced nations agreed this month to “de-risk” but not disengage from China, reducing their exposure to the world’s second-largest economy in everything from chips to minerals.

Reporting by Joe Cash and Bernard Orr; Editing by Edwina Gibbs

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