President Donald Trump signed a memo on Friday directing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to block Chinese investments in areas related to national security, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence. This move aims to safeguard sensitive technologies and prevent potential threats to national security.
The memo also includes provisions to expedite foreign investment in US projects while imposing restrictions on US companies from engaging in investments that align with the interests of the Chinese government. However, the specific mechanisms for enforcing these restrictions were not detailed in the memo.
This executive action follows a recent incident where Chinese hackers breached CFIUS' database in December, as part of a larger cyber intrusion into the Treasury Department's unclassified system. The breach underscored the ongoing concerns regarding cybersecurity and the need to protect critical infrastructure from foreign threats.
It is worth noting that the Biden administration had previously implemented similar measures through finalized rules last year. These rules aimed to limit US investments in Chinese industries to mitigate risks to national security and prevent unauthorized access to sensitive technologies.
