President Xi Jinping calls for self-reliance, reducing dependence on foreign countries

China must treat accelerating the development of next-generation artificial intelligence as a strategic issue, Chinese President Xi Jinping told Communist Party officials this week.

Days ago, the US imposed restrictions on technology exports from the US to a Chinese semiconductor maker. The Trump administration’s aggressive actions in the trade war have prompted Xi to step up calls for China to be “self-reliant,” according toWashington Post.

China must control artificial intelligence and ensure it is “firmly kept in our own hands,” he said. As the trade war intensifies, Xi has stressed that China needs to be able to stand on its own two feet and reduce its dependence on the United States, especially in technologies needed to drive its economy.

“Self-reliance is the starting point of China’s struggle,” Xi said last week in Guangdong during a four-day trip to southern China, where he inspected an electrical equipment factory and an e-commerce industrial park. Last month, while touring northern China, he also called on the country to “maintain the path of self-reliance amid rising protectionism” around the world.

The use of the term “self-reliance” recalls Mao Zedong’s frequent references to China’s economic decline in the 1960s. Now, Xi has used the term as a rallying cry against President Trump’s tariff-fueled pressure, repeating that China needs to do everything on its own.

Qiao Mu, a China researcher in Washington, commented: "Mr. Xi is using 'self-reliance', inherited from Mao Zedong's political thought, to deal with economic problems caused by the trade war with the US."

To address the trade deficit with China, Trump has unleashed a series of weapons. He has imposed 25% tariffs on $50 billion and 10% tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports, and has warned that the tariffs will increase to 25% in January if Beijing does not make concessions. He has also threatened to impose tariffs on another $267 billion in goods if Beijing tries to retaliate. China has few options to retaliate, since it imports much less from the United States than the United States imports from China.

Beijing’s push for self-reliance came after the United States in April banned American companies from working with Chinese telecommunications company ZTE, accusing it of selling products to Iran and North Korea and lying to U.S. federal investigators. The ban nearly forced ZTE to shut down because it relied on American equipment. The ban was lifted after Xi spoke with Trump.

The case has become a warning to Beijing that its core technologies are vulnerable to the United States. This week, the United States ordered its companies to restrict exports to Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit, a Chinese chipmaker accused of threatening U.S. national security.

"The trade tensions with the US, and especially the near collapse of ZTE, have reinforced Chinese leaders' desire for self-reliance in technology," said Yanmei Xie, from economic research firm Gavekal Dragonomics.

However, Chinese spies have been accused of stealing key industrial technology from American companies, particularly in the aerospace industry. Earlier this week, the US Justice Department indicted 10 Chinese people for allegedly stealing aircraft technology secrets from American companies.

China is celebrating the 40th anniversary of “reform and opening up” – the policy initiated by Deng Xiaoping that led to a dramatic change in China’s economic power. During his tour of the south last week, Xi visited several places that were pilot zones for reform and opening up. He pledged to continue pushing the economy into a new phase.

Qiao said Xi is trying to consolidate power at a time when the economy is slowing. That trend will continue next week, when Xi will speak at the opening of a major import expo in Shanghai to promote investment in China. American business leaders such as Bill Gates and companies such as Honeywell are expected to appear, but the Trump administration has declined to send officials.

Many experts are skeptical of Mr. Xi's economic vision and pledge to continue reform and opening up, seeing his continued focus on promoting state-owned enterprises.

“There is a major structural shift in the US-China relationship,” said China expert Bill Bishop, who doubts the two leaders will be able to achieve a breakthrough when they meet next month. “Even if Trump and Xi can reach a compromise at the G20, it will be a time-wasting exercise rather than a return to normalcy.”