US, China Should Resolve Solar 'Trade War' Before Senate Considers Investment Pact, Says Senator
The U.S. and China should resolve an ongoing "trade war" over solar panels and polysilicon materials that go into those products before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee considers any Bilateral Investment Treaty between the two countries, committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said April 28 during a hearing on U.S.-China relations. The latest offer from China on polysilicon imports appears "unacceptable and it looks like simple protectionism," said Corker. "This market obviously needs to reopen mutually beneficial trade and I expect this issue to be resolved soon and in a serious way,” Corker said during the hearing. “Surely the Chinese government and the U.S. government will be wise enough to fully resolve this problem before this committee considers the U.S.-China Bilateral Investment Treaty should it mature and be ready for putting forth here.” China and the U.S. both maintain antidumping and countervailing duties against each other on solar product imports.
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Also during the hearing, Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., said he plans to “soon” introduce legislation that would prohibit U.S. transfers of nuclear technology to China until Chinese violations of the U.S.-China Civil Nuclear Agreement—renewed in December—are resolved. On April 14, the Justice Department indicted China’s state-owned General Nuclear Power Company for conspiracy to illegally engage in the production and development of “special nuclear material” outside the U.S. without required Energy Department authorization, DOJ said (here). Markey said the indictments highlight the need for tighter restrictions on U.S. nuclear exports to China, and raise questions about how much China can be trusted to use U.S.-origin nuclear technology for non-military uses. “We just cannot allow China to continue to steal U.S. nuclear secrets with impunity or turn a blind eye to proliferation by notorious scofflaws within its jurisdiction,” he said. Markey pledged to work with other committee members to advance nonproliferation objectives. His office did not comment on when, specifically, the legislation is expected to be introduced.