NAfter Chinese criticism of its request to suppliers not to use goods and services from the Xinjiang region, the American chip manufacturer Intel has apologized. The intention was only “to comply with American laws”, wrote Intel on Thursday via the short message service Weibo.
With the reference, Intel did not want to take a position, but wanted to address compliance with the law. Intel respects that it’s a tricky thing in China. The company operates in a “developing and complex global environment” and should have dealt with it carefully, wrote the chip maker, which makes a quarter of its global sales in China.
The incident shows the increasing risks multinational corporations are operating in the area of conflict between sanctions from the West and human rights abuses in China. The US, the EU and other governments accuse China of accepting and even promoting forced labor and human rights violations in Xinjiang, especially in dealing with the Muslim Uyghur minority. Many western companies are therefore faced with the balancing act of wanting (or having to) comply with western values and laws on the one hand, but on the other hand wanting to benefit from the gigantic market in China. As in the case of Intel, there are repeated incidents and apologies that shake heads in the US and Europe.
The spokesman for the Foreign Office in Beijing, Zhao Lijian, again rejected the allegations as “lies by forces hostile to China in the USA”. Intel should respect the facts. The newspaper “Global Times”, which is published by the party organ “People’s Daily”, wrote that many Chinese people did not buy Intel’s apology. In response, the Chinese pop singer Wang Junkai (Karry Wang) from the boy group TFBoys ended his cooperation as a brand ambassador for Intel.
Meanwhile, it is becoming apparent that Intel intends to expand its capacities for the production of computer chips and semiconductors in France and Italy and to set up a larger production site in Germany. As you can hear, a research and design center is to be built in France and a test and assembly facility in Italy. The main factory for the production of wafers will probably be built in Germany, it is said in informed circles. Overall, the expansion will result in costs in the double-digit billion dollar range.
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