Is US pressuring allies like Japan to ban Chinese technology and apps like TikTok?

Japan’s Yomiuri newspaper reports Washington is set to ask Tokyo and allies to join it in taking a hard line on Chinese technology firms such as Huawei

This comes after India banned 59 Chinese apps, including TikTok, and Australia scrutinises the app for foreign interference and data privacy risks

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Popular Chinese apps such as TikTok have been cited by US authorities as potential security risks, as allies are reportedly urged to join the US in banning them. Photo: DPA

Published: 7:00am, 28 Jul 2020Updated: 11:45pm, 28 Jul 2020

The United States is expected to ask Japan and other allied nations to join it in banning Chinese technology and apps such as TikTok, on the grounds that they can be used to provide data to Beijing – a move one analyst has described as “weaponised public diplomacy” with an ulterior political motive.

The Yomiuri newspaper quoted a senior US government official as saying Washington is deeply concerned about China utilising technology to obtain sensitive information, and wants other countries to follow its lead on refusing to permit Huawei to take part in the development of its 5G communications systems. It is also making plans beyond the telecoms giant – which has been excluded from Japan’s domestic 5G network at the urging of the government.

Keith Krach, undersecretary for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment at the US State Department, told the Yomiuri that the US expects Japan to work with it, saying the ban would deepen “solidarity and unity with US allies”.

He indicated, however, that a final decision would still be left to Tokyo, and that Washington would “respect Japan’s sovereignty”.

“We will soon be expanding the clean path initiative beyond 5G to include clean apps,” Krach said.

There are no indications of the other Chinese apps that Washington is planning to ask Japan to ban.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in early July said the US will “handle” the issue of video-sharing app TikTok, insisting that it could provide the Chinese Communist Party with private information on users.

Jeff Kingston, director of Asian studies at the Tokyo campus of Temple University, said pressure on Japan to adopt Washington’s position on Chinese technology firms comes as no surprise, as the administration of President Donald Trump “plays the China card to win the election”.