Washington [US], May 9: US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the country may ban or impose restrictions on the import of internet-connected vehicles from China, following an investigation related to national security issues.
Secretary Raimondo said that the US Department of Commerce is reviewing public comments about the investigation that President Joe Biden's administration conducted in February. The purpose of the investigation is to assess whether imported vehicles Whether exports from China pose a national security risk or not, according to Reuters.
"We have to process all the data and then determine what action we want to take... We can take the most drastic action, which is to not allow Chinese connected vehicles to traffic." in the US or find ways to reduce it," Ms. Raimondo said.
Connected cars are cars that have the ability to connect and transmit data via the internet.
The White House in February said the US launched the investigation because the vehicles "collect large amounts of sensitive data about drivers and passengers, and frequently use cameras and sensors to record information." detailed information about US infrastructure".
At that time, White House officials told the press that it was too early to introduce measures related to China's connected vehicles.
In a hearing at the US House of Representatives, Ms. Raimondo expressed concern about China's connected vehicles "which can collect large amounts of data about Americans, who they are, what they say in the car, where they go." to, their driving style". She said Washington needs to be more serious in "considering the threat" from China's connected vehicles and other technology issues.
President Biden has repeatedly said he will take action to stop the wave of Chinese vehicle imports.
In comments to the US Department of Commerce, the automakers emphasized that improving their technology systems to mitigate national security concerns could be difficult.
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the trade association representing General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen and nearly all major automakers, said automakers are committed to developing a framework for information and communications technology and service systems in connected vehicles, to minimize risks associated with Chinese-designed systems.
The Biden administration is separately considering imposing new tariffs on vehicles made by Chinese companies, and officials are facing new pressure to limit imports of Chinese electric vehicles from Mexico.
China's Foreign Ministry said in March that Chinese cars are popular globally not because of "so-called unfair practices", but because they have emerged from fierce competition in the market. and technologically innovative.
In November 2023, a bipartisan group of US lawmakers issued a warning about Chinese companies collecting and processing sensitive data while testing self-driving cars in the US.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
