China accuses US of 'paranoid delusion' as Senate passes innovation bill

China on June 9 has accused the United States of “paranoid delusion” after Washington passed a sweeping policy bill aimed to tackle the escalating economic threat from Beijing. On June 8, The US Senate voted 68-32 to approve bold legislation that would boost the country’s ability to compete with the surging dominance of Chinese technology. The bill was passed due to the desire for hardline treatment of China is one of the few bipartisan sentiments in Congress. However, China’s foreign affairs committee called the legislation an attempt to interfere with its internal affairs.

As per a Chinese state media report, the foreign affairs committee termed the  United States Innovation and Competition Act as depriving the country of its “legitimate right to development through technology and economic decoupling.” The National People's Congress foreign affairs committee, as per Xinhua news agency, said, “The Bill shows that the paranoid delusion of egoism has distorted the original intention of innovation and competition.” It also said that the US bill was “full of Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice.”

What would the US bill allow?

The latest measure by the United States authorises around $190 billion for provisions to strengthen American technology and research and separately, it would also allow the government to spend $54 billion in surge the US production and research into semiconductors and telecommunications equipment including at least $2 billion dedicated to chips used by automakers that have witnessed dramatic shortages and made prominent production cuts. The bill, now passed by the House of Representatives will now be sent to the White House for US President Joe Biden to sign into law. 

“We are in a competition to win the 21st century, and the starting gun has gone off," Biden said. "As other countries continue to invest in their own research and development, we cannot risk falling behind." Meanwhile, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also said in a statement, “With the passage of the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, including my Endless Frontier Act...The Senate took a bold, strong step towards boosting American science, technology, and innovation for decades to come.”

IMAGE: AP