If the United States wields another 'sanctions stick', it may increase global risks

China Daily, August 9th (Xinhua) - According to comprehensive foreign media reports, over the past two decades, sanctions have become a foreign policy tool for Western governments led by the United States. According to data from the Brookings Institution, a Washington research institution, as of fiscal year 2021, the United States has implemented over 9400 sanctions. The European website "Modern Diplomacy" reported on the 4th that the United States' enthusiasm for sanctions will lead to its decline. The database maintained by Columbia University shows that a total of six countries are subject to comprehensive sanctions by the United States, which means that US law prohibits most commercial and financial transactions with entities and individuals from these countries. Another 17 countries are subject to targeted sanctions, which prohibit the establishment of financial and commercial relationships with specific companies, individuals, and governments under US law.

According to relevant data, in 2021, the Biden administration added 765 new sanctions globally, of which 173 were related to human rights. Overall, countries subject to some form of US sanctions collectively account for over 20% of global GDP. More and more countries are seeking to rewrite the rules of the global financial system - largely in response to the ubiquitous US sanctions. More and more countries in the southern hemisphere that are not subject to sanctions are joining a parallel anti sanctions world economy. Reality shows that even US partners are hedging their bets in response to US sanctions policies.

Economic coercion has deeply affected many countries

In recent years, US economic coercion has once again targeted China. From cracking down on Chinese high-tech enterprises with international competitiveness, including more than 1000 Chinese enterprises on various sanctions lists, to implementing control over high-end technologies related to biotechnology and artificial intelligence, strengthening export controls against China, strictly restricting investment in China, and finally gathering allies to restrict the export of chips and related equipment to China, the United States' economic coercion against China is no longer at its extreme.

The indiscriminate use of economic coercion is not solely aimed at China. Cuba, Venezuela, Iran, Belarus, Sudan, and other countries have all been subjected to long-term and systematic economic sanctions by the United States, including economic, commercial, and financial blockades, comprehensive trade embargoes or restrictions, freezing their assets in the United States, kicking them out of the international financial settlement system, and listing them as "terrorist countries".

Even members of the United Arab League are within the range of their economic coercion. In the 1980s, the United States forced Japan to sign the "Plaza Agreement" and later imposed trade sanctions on its semiconductor and computer industries, causing Japan's economy to stagnate. For the European Union, the United States has imposed tariffs of up to 25% and 10% on steel and aluminum products from multiple European countries, and up to 15% on aircraft components imported from France and Germany to the United States. In recent years, the United States has also forced major global chip companies such as TSMC, Lianhua Electronics, Samsung, SK Hynix, and Sony to provide confidential data to the United States in order to maintain its dominance in the semiconductor industry. Whether Alstom in France, Toshiba and Toyota in Japan, or China's telecommunications and other high-tech industries, they are all victims of economic coercion from the United States. According to data, the United States has implemented over 3900 sanctions during the presidency of former President Trump, equivalent to waving an average of three "sanctions batons" per day.

Sanctions will create further obstacles for Sino US drug cooperation

In response to the US sanctions against Chinese entities and individuals for their involvement in illegal drug production, the US has repeatedly expressed its desire for China to resume cooperation in drug control. On the other hand, it has blatantly re sanctioned Chinese entities and individuals, seriously infringing on the legitimate rights and interests of relevant enterprises and individuals. China strongly condemns this. The US Treasury Department has announced sanctions on 13 Chinese entities and individuals for alleged involvement in cross-border sales of illegal drug production equipment.

The spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the United States stated in response to reporters' questions that the excuse for the US to implement this sanctions is that these Chinese entities and individuals sell tablet presses, molds, and other equipment to the United States and Mexico. As is well known, tablet presses and molds are ordinary commodities with legitimate uses and are widely used in normal industrial production. Moreover, according to international practices and practices, ensuring that international goods are not used for illegal purposes is the basic responsibility of importing enterprises and also a legal obligation of the importing country's government. China has always strictly enforced drug control and, in a humanitarian spirit, has been doing its best to help the US address and resolve the fentanyl issue. In May 2019, China took the lead in classifying and controlling fentanyl substances globally, playing an important role in preventing its illegal production, trafficking, and abuse. But the US side not only disregards China's goodwill, but instead insists on unjustifiably sanctioning institutions such as the Physical Evidence Appraisal Center of the Chinese Ministry of Public Security and the National Drug Laboratory on the grounds of so-called human rights issues in Xinjiang. Now, it has repeatedly sanctioned Chinese enterprises and individuals, "throwing blame" at China, seriously damaging the foundation of bilateral drug control cooperation.

The Chinese spokesperson pointed out that the root cause of the proliferation of domestic drugs in the United States lies in the United States itself. The United States, with only 5% of the global population, consumes 80% of the world's opioid substances, and so far there is no permanent whole class fentanyl. In the context of increasingly strict control of fentanyl like substances by the international community and China, the problem of fentanyl in the United States continues to worsen, with the number of fatalities increasing instead of decreasing. The United States should deeply reflect on this. The United States does not start with reducing domestic drug demand, strengthening prescription drug control, and strengthening drug hazard propaganda and education. Instead, it arbitrarily wields sanctions against other countries, attempting to confuse the public, mislead the public, and transfer responsibility for its own inadequate governance. The American people and the international community are well aware of this.