By Delphine Touitou and Rob Lever, AFP — 23 September 2020
President Trump’s war on Chinese technology firms has changed the ground rules for global business. White House moves against TikTok and WeChat, and tough sanctions on Huawei, highlight the struggle for technology supremacy between the two economic giants. “At the heart of it is a struggle to dominate emerging technologies. The country that succeeds will realize huge economic and geopolitical benefits,” said Doug Barry of the US-China Business Council.
But many analysts argue that Trump’s actions could backfire on the US tech sector by encouraging China and other countries to respond in kind. “Trump’s moves are eroding confidence in US leadership. His executive order on TikTok set a bad precedent for other countries. It likely will embolden them to retaliate against US companies and demand payments for the ability to operate within their own borders,” said Darrell West of the Brookings Institution.