What do you say to a country that is bankrolling your existence? What do you say to a country that holds so much of your debt, that if they decided to cash in the treasury bonds they hold, your country would collapse? The first response might be not much. On the other hand, if that country is compromising national security, then something must be done.
A Taiwanese company was caught successfully shipping transducers, a component critical for gas centrifuges in creating bomb grade uranium to Iran. Heli-Ocean Technology Co. Ltd. shipped the parts at the request of an unnamed China based company. The parts were purchased by the Chinese company, procured by the Taiwanese company, and shipped by them on behalf of the Chinese firm. Somehow, the Taiwanese government got wind of this deal and conducted an investigation. The damage is already done though, and in the end, can’t do a thing to China.
Although U.N. sanctions forbid this kind of technology transfer to Iran, China, a U.N. member has apparently ignored those sanctions. In fact, the Chinese government is opposed to any kind of sanctions, preferring diplomacy. Sure, anything to keep the U.S. on its toes. Iran has made it clear what their plans are, even while claiming peaceful purposes with their nuclear program. However, they made no such peaceful overtures to Israel. Mahmoud Ahmajinedad has already stated that Israel should be wiped off the map. These transducers would be a step in that direction. More likely that they would prompt a pre-emptive strike by Israel. This is more than a crooked business deal.
China denies assisting Iran with their nuclear program, but Chinese companies have been caught (like this one) helping out on a number of occasions. The reality is that if China didn’t know this was about to occur, then that claim is either a lie, or they are more backward than they want the rest of the world to know. Tiny Taiwan found out. Spying, technological theft, shipping substandard products (which includes food), and aiding and abetting the enemy. They don’t sound backward to me. What will this administration do? Nothing. We owe too much money.
James Chanos says China is about to implode from cooking their books.
The money we owe China is not cooked. What China’s creative accounting would do is throw an already shaky world economy into chaos.