The Biden administration has announced a new set of severe restrictions on the sale of semiconductor technology to China. The announcement signals the dangerous standoff between the world’s two major technology superpowers, with the United States trying to establish a detrimental stranglehold on advanced computing and semiconductor technology, which can harm China's military and economic aspirations.

The restrictions, announced by the U.S. Department of Commerce, are intended, among other things, to slow the progress of Chinese military programs that use supercomputers to model nuclear explosions, guide hypersonic weapons and establish advanced networks to monitor regime opponents and minorities. If the restrictions are effective, China’s chip manufacturing industry will be set back for years, forcing American and foreign companies that use U.S. technology to discontinue support for some of China‘s leading factories and chip designers.

The U.S. undersecretary of commerce for industry and security said that his bureau was working to prevent sensitive technologies with military applications from being acquired by China’s military, intelligence, and security services.

Click here to read the restrictions.