Chinaโ€™s latest assault in tech battle with US is a way of starving the American war machine

Chinaโ€™s announcement of newย lawsย controlling the exports of โ€˜sensitive itemsโ€™ in a way that mirrors the US Commerce Departmentโ€™sย โ€˜entity listโ€™ย is the latest example of escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington.

The new regulations are set to control items said to be vital to the countryโ€™s national security, including military items, strategic technologies, artificial intelligence algorithms, and, most strikingly, rare earth mineral exports. 

The announcement comes as Donald Trumpโ€™s administration uses its last days to double down on China, with media reporting that it is set to blacklist the Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation as firms allegedly โ€˜controlledโ€™ by the countryโ€™s military.