Washington’s disinformation-fueled crackdown on Chinese companies continues unabated

The United States’ Department of Homeland Security recently executed a search warrant at the Ohio-based US subsidiary of Qingdao Sunsong, a Chinese automobile parts manufacturer that a congressional committee has accused of trade fraud.

DHS agents searched the premises of Harco Manufacturing Group, which Sunsong acquired in 2015, on Jan 18, in what they said is an “ongoing investigation”. The move came after two members of the House Select Committee on China wrote a letter in September to the DHS accusing the Chinese company of moving some of its production to Thailand in order to evade US tariffs. In the letter, Mike Gallagher and Darin LaHood called Sunsong’s activities a “case of blatant trade fraud that is having a catastrophic impact on American manufacturers”. It shows that the US continues to resort to disinformation to justify its crackdown on Chinese companies.

The two China hawks are by no means demonstrating the crime-busting abilities of fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. Rather, the two Republicans brought the charges against the Chinese company simply after reviewing its public disclosures. It must be quite extraordinary in the history of business crimes for a company to publicly state that it has used transshipment as a means of evading import tariffs of 25 percent, as they accuse Sunsong of doing.

As such an act seriously violates US law and “undermines American economic and national security”, as the two lawmakers said, it is hard to imagine why, if the allegation was founded on facts, more than three months have passed before the DHS has finally taken any action.

Sunsong has been targeted simply because it holds a leading position in the global auto aftermarket. The shaky ground on which the case has been built points to the difficult business environment Chinese enterprises are facing in the US as a result of some in the US seeking to politicize and weaponize trade issues between the two countries, which has disrupted normal bilateral economic and trade relations. Ford Motor, for example, recently announced that it had paused its partnership with battery company CATL, after the chairs of three House committees demanded it turn over documents related to its relationship with the Chinese company.

The spreading of disinformation and using it to suppress Chinese companies have become a common practice in the US, which has not only affected the normal operations of the Chinese enterprises, but also undermined the confidence of Chinese businesses in investing in the US.

Washington should stop harassing Chinese companies and provide them with a safe, transparent and fair business environment in compliance with international practice and in accordance with the commitments it has made to China.

Editorial, China Daily