China announces retaliatory measures targeting the United States

The Chinese government on Saturday announced the establishment of a mechanism that will allow it to restrict the activities of foreign companies, a measure widely seen as retaliation targeting the United States.

The Commerce Department's announcement, made in full escalation between Beijing and Washington, does not specifically target any foreign company.

But it generally mentions a series of acts that make companies on a future "list of untrusted entities" liable to fines, restrictions on activities or entry of equipment and personnel into China.

China's "Sovereignty"

The list will include companies whose activities "undermine China's national sovereignty and its security and development interests" or which violate "internationally accepted economic and trade rules," according to the ministry.

Tensions with the United States around TikTok and Huawei

The announcement comes as the United States has banned downloading, from Sunday, the TikTok and WeChat applications owned by the Chinese giants ByteDance and Tencent.

In a statement, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce on Saturday accused Washington of practicing "intimidation".

"If the United States persists in its unilateral actions, China will take the necessary measures to resolutely protect the rights and legitimate interests of Chinese companies," he threatened.

Tensions between the United States and China have grown since August when President Donald Trump, in the midst of his re-election campaign, issued an ultimatum to TikTok, which he accuses of industrial espionage for the account. of Beijing, without however having made public any tangible evidence.

The Chinese telecoms giant Huawei is also on an American blacklist to prevent it from acquiring "made in USA" technologies essential to its phones.

The United States is also putting pressure on Europeans to exclude Huawei from their future 5G networks.