China ‘Very Successful’ in Accessing Tech Despite Export Regs, Industry Official Says

The U.S. and its allies should modernize the way they approach export controls and reboot regimes that have so far failed to keep China from acquiring sensitive technologies, said Mark Hewitt, Lockheed Martin’s vice president for corporate strategy. Martin, speaking during a Sept. 27 defense industry conference hosted by IDEEA, said many current export regimes are outdated.

“Most of these regimes have their antecedents today in 1980s-era regulation and were really sort of intended to fight the Cold War in a time that was very different,” Hewitt said, adding that he would like to see “an allied effort” that seeks to better protect technology from adversaries while also removing barriers to sharing with allies. “Most of our major competitors -- I'm thinking here specifically of China -- are fast followers. They have been very successful in getting access to these technologies despite export regulations, and our most important competitive advantage against a competitor like that is actually speed.”

Matt Borman, a Bureau of Industry and Security official, said during the conference that the U.S. is looking to coordinate export controls more closely with trading partners that produce the world's most advanced technologies, particularly in the semiconductor space (see 2206290032). He said the U.S. wants to move toward a "common export licensing policy" for items that are currently controlled and to "get alignment" on items that aren't controlled but should be. "That's something that will just continue to evolve," Borman said.

Part of that effort began with Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Borman said the U.S. and allies are swapping information on license applications approvals and denials for items destined to Russia. "We want to make sure that we're not allowing things that our allies wouldn't, or vice versa," he said. "Because for sanctions, that's just critical. We absolutely have to be aligned on that."