Trade secrets theft part of Chinese ‘policy’: US prosecutor
The US Department of Justice has warned that Chinese “state-sponsored” theft of trade secrets is on the rise, as the two countries remain unable to reach an agreement on a new trade deal.
Speaking to CNBC in Singapore on Sunday, September 22, Adam Hickey, deputy assistant attorney general, said that recent DoJ prosecutions highlighted the threat that the Chinese government and Chinese companies post to US trade secrets.
“We expect other nations will want to become self-sufficient in critical technologies,” Hickey said.
But in China’s case, he said, “part of their industrial policy, part of the way they try to accomplish that is state-sponsored theft or creating an environment that rewards or turns a blind eye to it”.
China has consistently denied allegations of backing trade secrets theft. Major Chinese companies as well, such as Huawei, have hit back at the DoJ’s claims.
Earlier this month, Huawei said that US prosecutors were “digging up old civil cases that have already been settled, and selectively launching criminal investigations or filing criminal charges against Huawei based on claims of technology theft”.
“The fact remains that none of Huawei's core technology has been the subject of any criminal case brought against the company, and none of the accusations levied by the US government have been supported with sufficient evidence,” the Chinese telecoms firm said.
The US government has claimed that Huawei poses a national security threat to the US, and has sought to limit its influence in building the global 5G network.
Earlier this month, Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei offered a licence to the company’s 5G technology to “any US company” who wishes to install and operate it completely independently of Huawei.
As part of the licence, US companies could “modify our 5G technologies to meet their security requirements,” Ren said.
Chinese involvement in the theft of US trade secrets has been a major talking point for the Trump administration amidst a continuing trade war between the two countries.
Latest reports indicate that there is still some way to go before a new trade deal can be agreed.
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