US-China Establish Working Group And Export Control Info Exchange

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo kicked off her four-day China trip today by announcing, with her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao, the establishment of a “commercial issues working group” to meet twice-annually to “seek solutions on trade and investment issues and to advance U.S. commercial interests in China."

• The two agreed to, “launch the export control enforcement information exchange, which will serve as a platform to reduce misunderstanding of U.S. national security policies.”
• The two also agreed to, “communicate regularly at the Secretary and Minister level about commercial and economic issues and to meet in-person at least once annually.”
• The pledges of closer coordination are the most significant announcements to come out of the four cabinet-level trips undertaken by Biden administration officials to China this year.
• According to the Commerce Department: “Secretary Raimondo reinforced the Administration’s commitment to taking actions necessary to protect U.S. national security…” and, consistent with recent comments from other high-ranking Biden administration officials, Raimondo underscored that export controls, “are narrowly targeted at technologies that have clear national security or human rights impacts and are not about containing China’s economic growth.”