Trade deal won’t get done without action on forced tech transfers, US Chamber of Commerce lobbyist Myron Brilliant says
- Brilliant says China must enforce protections for US companies or ‘there isn’t going to be any final deal’
- Spokesman for China’s commerce ministry acknowledges that ‘structural issues’ are ‘an important part of these talks’
Any trade deal brokered between Washington and Beijing must include a Chinese central government measure aimed at ending forced technology transfer practices in China, backed up by enforcement, a prominent US business lobbyist said on Thursday.
“The Chinese have been saying that they don’t have any policy around forced technology transfers, but we know at the local level things are being implemented differently,” said Myron Brilliant, head of international affairs at the US Chamber of Commerce, referring to the practice of requiring foreign companies to share patented technology in exchange for access to the Chinese market.
“The question is what kind of directive will the [Chinese] central government agree to and how will they enforce it at the local level, and what kind of enforcement mechanism will be agreed to in a bilateral context?” said Brilliant, who is also executive vice-president of the influential business lobbying group.
Moreover, Brilliant, who is in close communication with US trade officials, predicted: “There isn’t going to be any final package that doesn’t have an enforcement component.”
Brilliant has met senior US trade officials over the course of the trade conflict, including US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, the lead negotiator of the current 90-day round of talks, which are due to end on March 1.
