Even if the U.S. strikes a phase-one trade deal with China, as President Donald Trump has said is likely, the U.S. government will maintain its restrictions on technology transfer to China, to slow the flow, in three key areas: Chinese investment in the U.S., Chinese students in the U.S. and American exports of advanced technologies to China.
Export controls on emerging technologies risk hurting not just China but the U.S. too by stymieing innovation in critical fields for the future. These new controls are a reaction to China's technological advances, but can only work as a stopgap measure until a more comprehensive solution is developed. Instead, the U.S. government should reinvest in the country's capacity to innovate and lead the world in science and technology.
