Quadrilateral Chips Alliance & The People’s Daily

Translating the Chinese Communist Party’s perspective on semiconductors

Chip Capitols’ second dive into state media this week examines how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) views the revitalization of industrial policy in the United States. Understanding this perspective is timely as the U.S. Commerce Department prepares to open applications for semiconductor manufacturing grants at the end of this month.

The article translated below from the People’s Daily (人民日报), the CCP’s official newspaper, lambasts the CHIPS Act and Inflation Reduction Act as protectionist and contrary to World Trade Organization (WTO) principles. It also interestingly coins the term “quadrilateral chips alliance” (芯片四方联盟) to describe the U.S.’s efforts to unite the Netherlands, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea in efforts to limit the Chinese semiconductor industry via export controls.

Seeing the People’s Daily use this language is interesting in its remarkable consistency with late-2021 language used by the Chinese embassy in Washington. At the time, the P.R.C. sent letters to American business executives and industry groups, urging them to oppose early forms of what became the CHIPS and Science Act passed last August. Like this article, that letter urged U.S. policymakers to drop their “zero-sum mindset,” and a foreign ministry spokesman at the time characterized American industrial policy as “Cold War thinking.”

To see how China may respond as CHIPS Act dollars begin to flow, please enjoy this article I translated from the “Lighthouse” column of the People’s Daily (人民日报). The “Lighthouse” (望海楼) is the newspaper’s international section, sharing editorial commentary on foreign policy subjects.

Chip Capitols will be back next week with a very exciting article written in collaboration with an incredible classmate of mine. We will take a deep dive into how policy mechanics differ between how the U.S. and China direct public funds to their semiconductor industries. Grants, tax credits, technology parks, local IC funds, major strategic projects, human capital support… We will dive into it all.

[Any mistakes in translation are my own. Bold, bracketed texts are annotations provided for clarity. The original Chinese text is below.]

U.S. Trade Hegemony Has Lost People's Heart and Minds (The Lighthouse)

Author: Yan Yu

December 23, 2022

Source: People's Daily Overseas Edition

In recent actions pursuing its “America First” doctrine and embrasing unilateralism, the U.S. has once again stoked public rage in the international community.

The World Trade Organization last week in Geneva, Switzerland held a meeting to review the U.S.’s trade policy. At the meeting, China, the European Union, Canada, Türkiye, and other members severly criticized U.S. trade policy. They strongly urged the U.S. to fulfill its obligations as a WTO member and not persist on a path of unilateralism and protectionism.

This is [the result of] a four-year comprehensive joint review of U.S. trade policy by WTO members. In their speeches, many members expressed concern over the systemic impact of U.S. trade policies on the multilateral trading system. Thirty-two members raised over 2000 pages worth of questions to the U.S., questioning whether recently passed measures like the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act are consistent with WTO rules.

Concern and frustration across the board reflect the international community’s shared aspirations. In recent years, the U.S.’s wayward attitude and cherrypicking approach to the WTO and international trade rules, as well as the American double standard of strict rule of law discipline for others and leniency for itself, have become a reality known and hated by all. in recent years the U.S. has ranted on about its “return to multilateralism,” it still holds tight to the “America First” doctrine, and its bullying actions are only increasing—

Destroying the multilateral trading system— As a member of the WTO, the U.S. has on the one hand refused to implement numerous WTO dispute settlements and continued imposing high tariffs under its domestic laws, namely the so-called "Section 301." On the other hand, it has abused "long-arm jurisdiction" to coerce other WTO members into compliance with domestic U.S. law. Data shows the U.S. is yet to implement over 90 antidumping measures that have been in force for over 20 years.

Unilateral hegemony— The United States is prone to extrapolate the concept of national security toward using any means necessary to exert pressure without restrictions, and maliciously suppress other countries’ institutions, enterprises and individuals. Recently, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced that 36 Chinese entities were placed on the U.S. export control "entity list." This interferes with Chinese and American companies’ normal economic and trade exchanges and cooperation and serves to disrupt market rules and the international economic and trade order.

Manipulating industrial policy with double standards— As the U.S. demands fair competition from other countries, it at the same time passes large-scale discrimatory subsidies to help its own industries gain competitive advantages. The Inflation Reduction Act, which has been criticized by many countries, is a representative example.

Disrupting global supply chains— Since the start of 2022, some American politicians have dug their heels into the Cold War "zero-sum game" mindset, constantly advocating "decoupling" from China and trying to sell the concept of "friend shoring" to U.S. allies. In October, the U.S. government issued restrictions on China’s access to semiconductor chips, comprehensively restricting American companies from providing high-end chips and manufacturing equipment to China. At the same time, it dragged South Korea, Japan, and the China’s Taiwan territory to form a "quadrilateral chips alliance ", causing serious damage to the global semiconductor supply chain.

The U.S.’s various actions demonstrate that its unilateralist hegemonic thinking has "penetrated the marrow." To protect its own interests and hegemonic standing, the U.S. has gone to every length, even sacrificing its allies’ interests, to make profits for itself. It does this at the cost of long-term harm to all countries and the world economy. This selfish act of forcing the world to foot the bill unmasks the core values of American egoism and hegemonism, and it also makes the European Union, South Korea, New Zealand and other allies further understand the U.S. hypocrisy of "saying one thing and doing another." In fact, it is not the first time the U.S. has placed allies on the receiving end of its disaster prevention efforts stabbed allies behind their backs.

In early December, the leaders of nine E.U. countries, including Spain, France, Italy, and Portugal, held a meeting in Spain. They pointed out that the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act was a protectionist policy and was detrimental to European industrial development. They asked the European Commission to make a joint response to the Act. Analyzing the collective voice of E.U. member states demonstrates that American trade protectionism has further deepened the rift between the U.S. and Europe.

Today, all parties, including American allies, have said "no" to the U.S. unilateralism and protectionism, which shows that justice and freedom are in the people’s hearts. This series of harmful U.S. practices running counter to the multilateral trading system will only lead to the loss of the people's hearts and betrayal by allies.

An open, fair, and transparent multilateral trading system is in the common interests of all countries. The international community urges the U.S. to correct its mistakes, commit to its international responsibilities, abide by WTO rules, earnestly safeguard the multilateral trading system’s authority, and promptly return to the family of multilateralism.

美国贸易霸凌尽失人心（望海楼）

■　严  瑜

2022年12月23日

来源：人民网－人民日报海外版

近来，奉“美国优先”为圭臬、大搞单边主义的美国，在国际社会又犯了众怒。

世界贸易组织上周在瑞士日内瓦举行美国贸易政策审议会议。会上，中国、欧盟、加拿大、土耳其等成员严厉批评美国贸易政策，强烈要求其履行世贸组织成员义务，不要在单边主义和保护主义道路上一意孤行。

这是时隔4年世贸组织成员对美国贸易政策进行全面集体评议。众多成员在发言中就美国相关贸易政策措施对多边贸易体制的系统性影响表达了关注。32个成员向美国提出超过2000个书面问题，涉及美国近期出台的《通胀削减法案》《芯片和科学法案》及其相关措施与世贸组织规则一致性等内容。

多方关切和不满，道出国际社会的普遍心声。近年来，美国对世贸组织和国际贸易规则“合则用不合则弃”的任性态度，及其严以律人、宽以待己的“美式双标”，已是人尽皆知、众所痛恶的事实。近段时间，美国虽然口口声声表示要“回归多边主义”，实则依然抱守“美国优先”，霸凌行径有增无减——

破坏多边贸易体制。作为世贸组织成员，美国一方面拒不执行大量已经生效的争端解决裁决，继续依据其国内法特别是所谓的“301条款”加征高关税；另一方面滥用“长臂管辖”，胁迫其他世贸组织成员遵守美国国内法。数据显示，美国至今保留着90多项实施超过20年的反倾销措施。

实施单边主义霸凌。美国动辄泛化国家安全概念，毫无限制地使用各种手段施压，动用国家力量恶意打压他国机构、企业和个人。近日，美国商务部发布公告，将36家中国实体列入美出口管制“实体清单”，干扰中美企业正常经贸往来合作，破坏市场规则和国际经贸秩序。

操纵产业政策双重标准。美国在要求其他国家公平竞争的同时，自己却通过大规模歧视性补贴，帮助本国产业获取竞争优势。遭多国点名批评的《通胀削减法案》就是典型例子。

扰乱全球产业链供应链。今年以来，美国某些政客固守“零和博弈”的冷战思维，不断鼓吹对华“脱钩”“断链”，并极力向盟友兜售“友岸外包”概念。10月，美国政府颁布对华芯片禁令，全面限制美国企业向中国提供高端芯片的产品和生产设备，同时强拉韩国、日本以及中国台湾地区组建“芯片四方联盟”，给全球半导体供应链带来严重破坏。

美国的种种行径表明，其单边主义霸凌思维已经“深入骨髓”。为了维护自身利益和霸权地位，美国无所不用其极，甚至不惜牺牲盟友利益，以对各国乃至世界经济造成长远危害为代价，为自己牟利。这种让全世界埋单的自私之举，将美国利己主义和霸权主义的核心价值观暴露无遗，也让欧盟、韩国、新西兰等盟友进一步看清美国“说一套做一套”的虚伪本性。事实上，把盟友当成挡灾救火“接盘侠”、背后给盟友“捅刀子”，美国早就不是第一次干了。

12月上旬，西班牙、法国、意大利、葡萄牙等9个欧盟国家领导人在西班牙举行会议，直指美国《通胀削减法案》是保护主义政策，有损欧洲产业发展，要求欧盟委员会对该法案作出共同回应。分析认为，欧盟成员国的这次集体发声，表明美国贸易保护主义行径进一步加深美欧之间的裂痕。

如今，包括盟友在内的各方纷纷对美国的单边主义、保护主义说“不”，足以说明公道自在人心，美国一系列与多边贸易体制背道而驰的做法，损人害己，最终只会使其尽失人心，陷入众叛亲离的境地。

一个开放、公正、透明的多边贸易体制符合世界各国共同利益。国际社会强烈呼吁美国纠正错误，真正承担应尽的国际责任，遵守世贸组织规则，切实维护多边贸易体制的权威性，早日真正回归多边主义大家庭。