President Xi Jinping of China, front row center, with senior technology company executives at a conference held at Microsoft in Redmond, Wash., in September. Credit Pool photo by Ted S. Warren, via Reuters
New York Times: U.S. Tech Giants May Blur National Security Boundaries in China Deals
HONG KONG — One Chinese technology company receives crucial technical guidance from a former People’s Liberation Army rear admiral. Another company developed the electronics on China’s first atomic bomb. A third sells technology to China’s air-to-air missile research academy.
Their ties to the Chinese military run deep, and they all have something else in common: Each Chinese company counts one of America’s tech giants — IBM, Cisco Systems or Microsoft — as a partner.
Such links, which are generally not well publicized, are now at the center of a debate among some in the American defense community, including former United States military officials, analysts and others. While the cross-border partnerships, under which American tech companies share, license or jointly develop advanced technologies with Chinese counterparts, are a growth area for business, security experts are increasingly questioning whether the deals harm United States national security.
WNU Editor: This debate should have been done 4 - 5 years ago .... but the U.S. government and these tech companies are not interested .... they only see the dollar signs. And as to the claim that these tech transfers are harming national security .... it is not a claim, it is a fact. The chips in U.S. military tech are the same chips that the Chinese military now uses.
