Carey: U.S. Steel Deal Counters Chinese Industry Dominance
Nippon Steel’s proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel would better position the United States and one of its closest allies to compete with Chinese steel production, National Defense Committee executive director Bob Carey writes in a new opinion piece for the National Interest.
Some members of Congress have called for a Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) review of the deal, citing “national security concerns” over Nippon being headquartered being in Japan. However, these members fail to explain “how a company based in Japan—one of America’s closest and strongest allies and the largest host nation of overseas American service members—harms national security.”
In fact, the deal could help reduce China’s grip on the market, Carey notes. The acquisition “would create the world’s second-largest steelmaker and a close competitor to China Baowu Steel”—the world’s largest producer—”in terms of production capacity, empowering America and its allies to counterbalance Chinese manufacturing.”
CFIUS “should do its due diligence and examine this deal as it does all others, without preconceived notions and based upon law,” Carey adds, pointing to a recent Congressional report that recommends Japan be added to the whitelist of Excepted Foreign States.
“Just because someone calls something a national security threat doesn’t make it one,” Carey concludes. “When such claims are made, it is imperative for those making them to explain how they are valid rather than expect us all to gasp in horror and pick up pitchforks to march on the U.S. Steel headquarters.”
Read the full piece here.
