President Donald Trump recently signed a National Security Presidential Memorandum aimed at promoting foreign investment while protecting America’s national security interests, particularly from threats posed by foreign adversaries like the People’s Republic of China.
Welcoming foreign investment is crucial for economic growth, job creation, and innovation in the United States. That’s why this Memorandum will create a “fast-track” process to facilitate greater investment from specified allies and partners, with conditions that prevent investors from partnering with foreign adversaries of the U.S. in corresponding areas. President Trump also promised the U.S. will expedite environmental reviews for any investment over $1 billion.
The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, will be used to restrict Chinese investments in strategic U.S. sectors like technology, critical infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture, energy, raw materials, and others, the White House explained.
U.S. farmland and real estate near sensitive facilities, will be protected. Foreign adversaries will also be restricted in their access to U.S. talent and operations in sensitive technologies.
New or expanded restrictions may be considered on U.S. outbound investment to China in sensitive technologies, including semiconductors, artificial intelligence, quantum, biotechnology, aerospace, and more, to stop American funds from supporting China’s Military-Civil Fusion strategy.
“President Trump is committed to making the United States a premier destination for investment while balancing national security interests,” the White House underscored.
Certain foreign countries, including China, systematically direct investment in American companies to gain access to cutting-edge technology, intellectual property, and leverage in strategic industries. These efforts must be countered, declared the White House.
Foreign entities and individuals hold roughly 43 million acres of U.S. agricultural land, which is nearly two percent of all land in the U.S. China owns more than 350,000 acres of farmland across 27 states.
China is exploiting American capital and ingenuity to fund and modernize its military, intelligence, and security operations, posing direct threats to United States security with weapons of mass destruction, cyber warfare, and more, noted the White House.
President Trump is keeping his promise to prevent foreign adversaries from taking advantage of the United States. He vowed to “adopt new rules to stop U.S. companies from pouring investments into China, and to stop China from buying up America, allowing all of those investments that clearly serve American interests.”
