Washington / Beijing. Shortly before the end of his term in office, US President Donald Trump is again targeting apps from China, thus fueling further tensions with the People's Republic. After Trump had already tried to ban the popular TikTok video platform last year, he is now taking on the payment services Alipay and WeChat Pay, among other things, and justifying this with dangers to “national security”. Beijing responded with harsh criticism.
In the ban issued on Tuesday, which is only to come into force after the end of Trump's term of office, the apps CamScanner, Tencent QQ, VMate, QQ Wallet and WPS Office are also mentioned in addition to Alipay and WeChat Pay. The government in Washington justified the measure by saying that the apps could be misused for espionage purposes and that user data could be passed on to the government in Beijing.
The apps were selected for the ban because they were downloaded in large numbers in the US, said a senior government official. This brings with it the risk that tens of millions of user data could be misused.
The decree is also intended to contain “China's big data strategy”, in the course of which massive amounts of data such as “photos, text messages, calls to parents” would be collected. These data could also be a tool for “mass repression,” added the government official, referring to the situation of the Uyghurs in China and the situation in Hong Kong.
The ban is due to come into force in 45 days, when the new president, Joe Biden, is already in office. The government official said the ban on the apps had not been discussed with the “potential” Biden government. Trump does not recognize his election defeat against Biden so far. Biden accuses him of hindering the handover of official business to the new government.
TikTok ban blocked
The Trump administration also took action against the popular Chinese video platform TikTok, which is used by around 100 million people in the United States, last year. The US government also accuses the owner company Bytedance of forwarding user data to the Chinese government, which Bytedance rejects. However, the planned TikTok ban had been blocked by the US judiciary. The Trump administration appealed against this at the end of December.
The dispute over TikTok is part of the conflict between China and the United States, which intensified during Trump's tenure. Both sides are engaged in a trade dispute, along with diplomatic tensions and mutual accusations.
In response to the new decree, Beijing accused the Trump administration of “harassment” and also complained that Washington's arguments were overstretching the concept of “national security”. In doing so, the US “harmed itself and others,” said a spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.
The ban will “of course have some impact on related Chinese companies,” she added. “But it could be more important that it harms the interests of American consumers and the United States.” The US spoke of “free markets and fair competition – but how do they behave?” Said the spokeswoman.
