A War Without Bloodshed
Al-Ittihad, UAE, June 7
Those who pay attention to the escalating tensions between the United States and China recognize that the most influential and consequential conflict lies within the realm of high-tech products that rely on integrated circuits, microchips, and other electronic components. Both countries are developing at a rapid pace and the race to create the best technologies has taken center stage. Technology has become a primary source of power, and the electronic chips needed to enable and enhance this power in both quantity and quality have become indispensable. Consequently, the “war” over these chips has taken on greater significance than any military confrontation, as superiority in this arena could be a decisive factor in the outcome of this conflict. The repercussions of this “war” are more extensive than one would expect from a regular conflict. Additionally, this “war” is intertwined with the exacerbating conflict over Taiwan, home to the world’s most significant chip manufacturer. A war initiated by Washington has intensified in recent years, as it became evident that it could not outrun China. The only way for it to stay ahead was to impede the latter’s access to the crucial elements of its base capabilities. Consequently, Washington has targeted Beijing’s acquisitions of the most advanced electronic chips. Additionally, Washington has imposed restrictions on the sale of manufacturing equipment and software used in its design. On top of that, it has barred the Yangtze Memory Company from carrying out its operations in the United States. China initially sought to mitigate the effects of these restrictions via various means before ultimately responding by implementing limits on American tech titan Micron’s operations in China. This particular enterprise was targeted as its chips can be easily replaced with imports from South Korea-based corporations such as Samsung and SK Hynix. It is expected that the flames of this war between the United States and China, which the US is actively involved in, will only intensify. Washington is also concerned about its lack of control over American companies, mainly motivated by the pursuit of profit. Accordingly, the US government began offering incentives to these companies linking them to a program ensuring that the Pentagon and intelligence agencies are supplied with the most advanced technologies. This is to satisfy the country’s need to protect national security. On March 1, a new law allocating $39 billion in incentives for electronic chip makers such as Intel and NVIDIA, and another $13 billion for research and development in this field, went into effect. This is a war without bloodshed, a war of the mind rather than battleships, bombs, and missiles. Yet its implications are just as deadly. —Waheed Abdul Majeed (translated by Asaf Zilberfarb)
