March 20, 2024 | Daily Notes
Tim Cook visits China, U.S. Considers further sanctions against China semiconductor capabilities
Contextualizing U.S. foreign policy vis-a-vis U.S. domestic policy.
Maintaining dominance over semiconductor design is central to U.S. national security. To do so, the United States must curtail rivals' ability to compete with it, such as China.
The Biden administration is considering blacklisting several Chinese semiconductor firms linked to Huawei Technologies, according to Bloomberg News.
While complicated by geopolitical tensions, commercial relations between the United States and China appear to have improved. At least some Western business leaders are attempting to navigate the turbulence.
“There’s no supply chain in the world more critical to the company than China’s, Cook told the Global Times in an interview tweeted by the newspaper.”
Relations between China and some U.S. allies are warming. Chinese Foreign Minister says China and Australian economies are ‘highly complementary’ during a foreign visit.
Russia-Ukraine
U.S. Will Not Back Down on Support for Ukraine (U.S. Department of Defense)
In remarks opening the meeting, Austin detailed the sheer loss that Russian President Vladimir Putin has caused his own country in its brutal war on Ukraine. "For more than two years, Ukraine's forces have fought Putin's aggression with defiance and skill," he said. "Russia has paid a staggering cost for Putin's imperial dreams. At least 315,000 Russian troops have been killed or wounded."
How the war in Ukraine has split the Czechs and Slovaks (Washington Post)
“I think I can say there are differences among us,” Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said at the sidelines of meetings at the end of February of a four-nation bloc comprising his country, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. “I won’t keep it secret, it wouldn’t make sense, that we differ in the views of the cause of the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the ways of solving it.”
Israel-Palestine
White House will propose alternative Rafah options to Israel (Axios)
The Biden administration is weighing several alternatives to an Israeli ground invasion of Rafah, which it will propose to a high-level Israeli delegation set to visit Washington next week, two U.S. officials told Axios.
How Gaza Civilians Have Fared After Israel Has Asked Them to Flee (New York Times)
Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security adviser, has said that a major ground invasion in Rafah would be a mistake, not least because it would further imperil humanitarian access. Displacement has contributed to a hunger crisis sweeping the territory, and the United Nations has said that an invasion could mean that an already catastrophic situation slides “deeper into the abyss.”
U.S. Immigration
Appeals Court Puts Texas Immigration Law on Hold Again (New York Times)
The State of Texas late Tuesday was once again prevented from enforcing a strict new immigration law that gives local police agencies the power to arrest migrants who cross the border without authorization.
Another twist in Texas immigration policy (USA Today)
A federal appeals court Tuesday night again issued a hold on SB 4 — a Texas law that would authorize state and local police to arrest and even deport people suspected of being in the United States without legal authorization — in the next phase of an ongoing legal rollercoaster over a state-level immigration policy.
China
US Weighs Sanctioning Huawei’s Secretive Chinese Chip Network (Bloomberg)
The Biden administration is considering blacklisting a number of Chinese semiconductor firms linked to Huawei Technologies Co. after the telecom giant notched a significant technological breakthrough last year, people familiar with the matter said.
Such a move would mark another escalation in a US campaign to ringfence and curtail Beijing’s AI and semiconductor ambitions. It would ratchet up the pressure on a Chinese national champion that’s made advances despite existing sanctions, including producing a smartphone processor last year that many in Washington thought beyond its capabilities.
China foreign minister says China, Australia economies 'highly complementary' (Reuters)
The economies of China and Australia are "highly complementary" and have great potential, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said during a meeting with his Australian counterpart, according to a statement released by his ministry on Wednesday.
Apple CEO Arrives in China Touting Its Role as iPhone Base (Bloomberg)
Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook arrived in China on Wednesday touting the country’s importance as a market and production base, reaching out to Chinese consumers who may be souring on the maker of iPhones.
There’s no supply chain in the world more critical to the company than China’s, Cook told the Global Times in an interview tweeted by the newspaper. Apple’s been expanding its base in the country and increasing investment over the past 30 years, he added.
Apple CEO, other foreign executives flock to China, as nation steps up efforts to attract investors (Global Times)
Apple CEO Tim Cook has been in Shanghai for another visit to China, declaring on Wednesday that "there is no place more important than China" for the US tech giant's supply chain. Cook is among a long list of global business executives who are expected to visit China in the coming days for two major forums, demonstrating the great importance that multinationals attach to the Chinese market.
U.S. Semiconductors
Intel clinches nearly $20 billion in awards from Biden to boost US chip output (Reuters)
The Biden administration said it is awarding Intel nearly $20 billion in grants and loans on Wednesday, supercharging the company's domestic semiconductor chip output and marking the government's largest outlay to subsidize leading-edge chip production.
President Joe Biden will announce the preliminary agreement for $8.5 billion in grants and up to $11 billion in loans for Intel in Arizona, where some of the funding to be used to build two new factories and modernize an existing one.
Who’s Winning the US-China Chip War? (Citigroup)
Photo by Philip Myrtorp on Unsplash