US Attorney General William Barr says American businesses ‘part of problem’ in tech war with China

Name: Why China is racing to become the global leader in 5G technology
Uploaded: 2020-06-22T06:14:19.000Z
Duration: 2 min 2 s
Description: Why China is racing to become the global leader in 5G technology

Barr reiterated the Trump administration’s efforts in confronting China’s drive to supplant the West in areas including 5G mobile technology

He urged western countries to ‘rally around’ Nokia and Ericsson as 5G network equipment suppliers to shut out Huawei

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United States Attorney General William Barr portrayed parts of the American business community as ingrates, who will sacrifice the long-term viability of their companies for short-term profit. Photo: Reuters

Bloomberg

Published: 2:14pm, 22 Jun 2020Updated: 11:40pm, 22 Jun 2020

United States Attorney General William Barr said some American businesses are helping China in the race for economic and technological dominance by putting their own earnings above the national interest.

Without naming any company, Barr portrayed parts of the US business community as ingrates because “they’re willing – ultimately, many of them – to sacrifice the long-term viability of their companies for short-term profit, so they can get their stock options and move into the golf resort”.

While US President Donald Trump is confronting China’s drive to supplant the West in areas including 5G mobile technology, “the American business community has been a big part of the problem”, Barr said in a pre-taped interview on Fox News’ weekly Sunday Morning Futures show. “They’re not taking the long-term view and the national view of maintaining the American strength,” he said.

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Why China is racing to become the global leader in 5G technology

Barr couched his comments in the administration’s focus – and Trump’s “America First” campaign theme – of driving back China’s influence in the US and around the world.

That includes “cracking down” on Chinese researchers “who are sent over to get involved in our key technological programmes”, and urging western countries to “rally around” Finland-based Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson as 5G network equipment suppliers to shut out Huawei Technologies, he said.

On the same programme on May 31, US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said that Europe “needs to get” Huawei “out of their system” as part of ensuring “that the next century remains a Western one”.

Evoking the national unity against Nazi Germany during the second world war, Barr suggested that US companies may be forgetting that they owe an allegiance to the US.

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