WASHINGTON - The Republican and Democratic leaders of a U.S. congressional committee on China urged Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to urgently implement outbound investment restrictions on the country, warning that Beijing was using American capital to develop technologies as her department debated new rules.
The order, expected to be implemented in the coming year as Treasury develops new guidelines, aims to prevent American money and expertise from helping China develop technologies that could support its military modernization.
"We should expect that the CCP will seek to evade restrictions that are narrowly defined," Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi wrote, adding that Yellen should not allow for "excepted transactions" they felt would dilute the effectiveness of the rules. Some U.S. officials have said the outbound investment rules should not be overly broad to avoid harming the U.S. economy. Others, including former Biden administration officials, have called the measure a good first step, but said that Congress should provide resources to expand it.