China’s President calls for the country’s independence and self-sufficiency in technology  

China will be the star until 2035

China’s President Xi Jinping, in a speech before the country’s lawmakers, emphasized that China must strengthen research in science and technology if it wants to achieve self-sufficiency and become a global superpower in the field. He also said it needs to solve major problems in certain technology sectors from the ground up, as the country faces more and more export restrictions from the US.

To face international competition in science and technology, we must achieve a high degree of self-sufficiency and improvement. We must immediately improve research and solve important technological problems at the source.

The Chinese President’s decision comes after years of sanctions and hardships from the West as he seeks to close the technology gap with the US and its allies, particularly in advanced chip technology.

In January, Japan and the Netherlands decided to join the ban on Chinese chip exports announced by the US in October 2022. The initial sanctions targeted Chinese purchases of advanced artificial intelligence chips, as well as equipment used by chip factories.

Xi also wants to grow the production of top tech talent, aiming to make China one of the world’s leading countries in terms of strategic and technological power by 2035.