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Viking Bohman

@vikingbohman.bsky.social
800 followers 615 following 43 posts

I keep track of China’s sanctions, export controls and other tools of economic statecraft | PhD Candidate @FletcherSchool | Associate @kinacentrum kinacentrum.se/en/medarbetare/vikin…

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Reposted by Viking Bohman
The Fletcher School @fletcherschool.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
In his new piece comparing U.S. and Chinese economic strategy, Fareed Zakaria references research from Fletcher PhD student @vikingbohman.bsky.social. @washingtonpost.com www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
washingtonpost.com
Opinion | Trump now plays by China’s rules
The U.S. wins through openness and innovation, not tariffs and centralized planning.
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Nadège Rolland @rollandnadege.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
China does not always rely on charm offensives to shape the behavior of its Borderlands neighbors but has also regularly used economic coercion. Read Audrye Wong, @vikingbohman.bsky.social and @victoraferguson.bsky.social's new study. strategicspace.nbr.org/pressure-on-...
strategicspace.nbr.org
Pressure on the Periphery: China’s Economic Coercion in the Borderlands - Mapping China's Strategic Space
Over the past two decades, economic sanctions have emerged as a central instrument in the foreign policy toolkit of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). As the most valuable export destination for ma...
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Sense Hofstede @sensehofstede.nl · 19/10/2025
China’s rare earth export controls have gone global. Can it enforce them? – SCMP: ‘China does not yet have a comparable compliance architecture underpinning its export control regime’
scmp.com
China’s rare earth export controls have gone global. Can it enforce them?
As economies look to diversify rare earth supplies in wake of China’s broad export controls, analysts say measures will be hard to implement.
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
... from state-backed consumer boycotts to formal export controls — all manually coded and regularly updated. Visualize the full spectrum of PRC sanctions at: www.chinasanctionsmonitor.com Economist: www.economist.com/china/2025/0...
chinasanctionsmonitor.com
China Sanctions Monitor
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Excited to see our database mentioned in @economist.com today alongside comments by Rebecca Arcesati and @mmaggiori.bsky.social The China Sanctions Monitor, developed with @victoraferguson.bsky.social and Audrye Wong, tracks more than 200 cases of China’s economic sanctions from 2010 to today ...
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
If you're interested in China’s latest moves in the sanctions space, have a look at our new resource, the China Sanctions Monitor: chinasanctionsmonitor.com
chinasanctionsmonitor.com
China Sanctions Monitor
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
Joint statement: www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-st... MOFCOM statements: exportcontrol.mofcom.gov.cn/article/gndt... exportcontrol.mofcom.gov.cn/article/gndt...
whitehouse.gov
Joint Statement on U.S.-China Economic and Trade Meeting in Stockholm
The Government of the United States of America (the “United States”) and the Government of the People’s Republic of China (“China”), Recalling the Joint
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
Overall, China’s export control system remains firmly in place, and Beijing retains considerable flexibility in how it applies these controls to actors in both the United States and Europe.
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
Second, China is not (even) committing to fully withdraw these restrictions — Chinese companies must still apply for permission to do business with the listed entities, and MOFCOM retains the authority to reject those applications.
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
Based on MOFCOM’s statements, China appears to be suspending only four decisions from April 4 and 9, covering 28 US entities on the export control list and 17 US entities on the Unreliable Entity List.
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
First, the promise to ease non-tariff measures remains highly partial — it applies only to measures against the United States imposed since April 2, while many export licensing requirements were introduced earlier.
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
Judging from the US–China joint statement after talks in Stockholm, and clarifications from China’s Ministry of Commerce, Beijing is again showing no sign of committing to roll back the export controls it has tightened on critical raw materials during the trade war.
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Jane Duckett @j-duckett.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
“China’s government spending has pivoted toward social welfare to a degree unseen for at least a generation” www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
China’s Social Spending Hits Highest Level in Nearly Two Decades
China’s government spending has pivoted toward social welfare to a degree unseen for at least a generation, as it runs a record budget deficit with a focus on boosting consumption to cushion the blow ...
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 14/07/2025
New in @thewirechina.bsky.social: Audrye Wong, @victoraferguson.bsky.social and I on how China’s export controls mirror Western frameworks but keep strategic flexibility through vague legal wording www.thewirechina.com/2025/07/13/c...
thewirechina.com
China’s Elastic Export Controls - The Wire China
Beijing’s economic coercion is getting smarter.
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Finbarr Bermingham @fbermingham.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
NEW: Some bonkers numbers in China's May customs data. Detailed figures came out Fri when I was off, so took a deep dive today First big picture EU stuff: China's EU exports up 12% China's EU imports down 2.37% There is a 22% increase in the EU's China deficit in May alone
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
Some may have hoped China’s shift to formal sanctions would bring clarity. It hasn’t (yet). Licensing remains opaque, justifications vague, enforcement selective. This underscores the need for the EU to further sharpen its monitoring tools to detect coercion. Report: kinacentrum.se/en/publicati...
kinacentrum.se
China’s sanctions gambit: Formal and informal economic coercion in the second trade war - Swedish National China Centre
In the first half of 2025, China responded to the renewed US–China trade war with more aggressive and sophisticated measures than during the 2018–2020 conflict.
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
In the years ahead, Europe should be prepared for the possibility that China could use export controls more frequently, not only to pressure member states and derail EU policies it opposes, but also to target firms that pose a threat to its commercial dominance. /6
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
China’s new global export controls also create problems for third parties. In Europe, some firms have had to halt production due to delays—delays that may have been intended as a warning against imposing further restrictions or aligning too closely with Washington. /5
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
The US agreed to a compromise with Beijing just 3 months after its first tariffs—twice as fast as in the first trade war. A key reason may be that China’s use of formal sanctions like export controls, resembling Western legal tools, delivered a more credible and legible threat to Washington. /4
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
Beijing increasingly uses a flexible two-step sanctions method: first establishing legal grounds for escalation, then activating them when tensions rise. Export controls, antitrust actions, and anti-monopoly probes all follow this pattern. /3
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
The second US–China trade war in early 2025 was the first real test of China’s new economic weapons. At least 26 measures, formal and informal, targeted the US—tariffs, export controls, regulatory probes, and more—demonstrating an increasingly sophisticated approach to economic coercion /2
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
China’s sanctions strategy is evolving fast. In a new study, we map 200+ PRC economic restrictions from 2010–2025—the first database to capture the full range of sanctions, from informal state-backed boycotts to formal measures like export controls. /w @victoraferguson.bsky.social, Audrye Wong /1
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Sense Hofstede @sensehofstede.nl · 15/06/2025
Exclusive: US-China trade truce leaves military-use rare earth issue unresolved, sources say – Reuters: ‘Beijing has not committed to grant export clearance for some specialized rare-earth magnets that U.S. military suppliers need for fighter jets and missile systems, the people said.’
reuters.com
Exclusive: US-China trade truce leaves military-use rare earth issue unresolved, sources say
Beijing has not committed to grant export clearance for some specialized rare-earth magnets that U.S. military suppliers need for fighter jets and missile systems, the sources said.
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Patricia M. Thornton @pm-thornton.bsky.social · 13/06/2025
Bloomberg: #China Forced to Keep Unprofitable Firms Alive to Save Jobs & Avoid Unrest Saddled with the most loss-making industrial companies since 2001, Xi is trying to avoid mass layoffs. Protests rose 41% in the 4th Q from same period in 2023 www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
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Mona Paulsen @monapaulsen.bsky.social · 06/06/2025
Dan and I have substantially revised our paper after engaging with colleagues. It has been a particularly tough paper for me to think through and digest the why, how, and what of WTO collective action in response to the United States' trade actions. @ssrn.bsky.social papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
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Abe Newman @abenewman.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
1/A government that is willing to do this is the same government that would nationalize a company. It is the same mentality of state-market relations. This is not an issue of Universities need to stand up. The whole free market system needs to stand up. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/22/u...
nytimes.com
Shock at Harvard After Government Says International Students Must Go
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Finbarr Bermingham @fbermingham.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
One thing worth pointing out: Trump is doing his best to hand the Europeans to Beijing on a plate. That China is unwilling to give even an inch in negotiations with Brussels, even as it puts on the charm with European capitals, tells you all you need to know on how it views Europe.
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Michael Pettis @michaelpettis.bsky.social · 29/04/2025
Yicai: "Seventy-five percent of the Chinese foreign trade enterprises interviewed by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade intend to expand into emerging markets to compensate for shrinking exports to the United States." www.yicaiglobal.com/news/75-of-c...
yicaiglobal.com
75% of Chinese Exporters Eye Emerging Market Expansion to Offset US Tariffs, Trade Body Finds
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Stephen Walt @stephenwalt.bsky.social · 29/04/2025
Thanks for the opportunity and the many useful questions and comments!
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Martijn Rasser @martijnrasser.bsky.social · 23/04/2025
The Chinese government has warned South Korean companies of retributions for exporting any product containing its critical metals to US military contractors. www.kedglobal.com/economy/news...
kedglobal.com
China bans export of Korean goods containing its rare earth metals to US - KED Global
The Chinese government has warned South Korean companies of retributions for exporting any product containing its critical metals to US military contractors, a
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 21/04/2025
Had fun speaking with students at Taiwan National University about what makes research 'policy-relevant' -- it gave me a reason to revisit this article which I think holds up quite well www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 12/04/2025
I would interpret the US tariff exemptions primarily as an attempt to mitigate the impact on electronics and consumers more than as a signal of a US-China deal. The exempted categories cover about 22% of US imports from China. content.govdelivery.com/bulletins/gd...
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Viking Bohman @vikingbohman.bsky.social · 13/04/2025
These exempted product categories seem pretty significant. The fact that Trump couldn’t pretend to fully follow through on his tariff threats for more than a few days without caving to lobbying from US firms doesn’t exactly signal strength to Beijing on.ft.com/4lkutXo
on.ft.com
Trump exempts smartphones from ‘reciprocal’ tariffs after market rout
Dispensation is first sign of softening of levies against China and provides a big boost for Apple
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Aime Williams @aimewilliams.bsky.social · 12/04/2025
Some big exemptions to Trump's reciprocal tariffs here, notably on consumer goods like smartphones, laptops, earphones etc. Big win for US tech, esp Apple. www.ft.com/content/3eb4...
ft.com
Trump excludes smartphones from reciprocal tariffs after market rout
Exemption is first sign of softening of levies against China and provides a huge boost for Apple
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Cindy Wan @cindywan.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
阿塗’s cartoon today: “Fold or Call?”
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Daniel McDowell @danielmcdowell.bsky.social · 09/04/2025
The spike in Treasury yields is highly unusual & concerning. I don't want to draw too strong a conclusion from a single snapshot in time, but the list of potential disruptions to the status quo where USD/Treasuries = world's 'safe asset' is long & getting longer. Here's a non-exhaustive list. 🧵1/9
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Sense Hofstede @sensehofstede.nl · 09/04/2025
China to strengthen ties with neighbours: Xi Jinping’s first comments since trade war escalates – SCMP: ‘delivered at a two-day high-profile central working conference on neighbourhood diplomacy’ ‘the first dedicated session held by China’s top leadership on neighbourhood diplomacy since 2013.’
scmp.com
Developing | China to strengthen strategic ties with neighbours, Xi Jinping says
Chinese leader says region will strengthen bonds by ‘appropriately’ managing differences and enhanced supply chain ties.
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Victor Ferguson @victoraferguson.bsky.social · 04/04/2025
New open access article in @journalofgss.bsky.social on how China and Russia (similarly!) use economic sanctions. Using new data, I disaggregate 53 CN and 50 RU cases from 2000-23 to look at ~300 separate sanctions, examining 6 mechanisms of implementation and their dynamics. doi.org/10.1093/jogs...
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Air-Moving Device @airmovingdevice.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
DOGE/Musk preferentially cancelled grants and contracts to recipients in counties that voted for Harris in 2024. Among cancellations with election data available, 92.9% and 86.1% cancelled grants and contracts went to Harris counties, representing 96.6% and 92.4% of total dollar amounts.
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Abe Newman @abenewman.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
1/The government is weaponizing its ties to the private sector. For business this is a new hinge moment of political risk. Supply chain literature has some lessons: identify your exposure, derisk, respond collectively. Failure puts democracy and economy on the line. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/n...
nytimes.com
Columbia University’s Concessions to Trump Seen as a Watershed
Threatened with losing $400 million in federal funding, the university agreed to overhaul its protest policies and security practices.
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Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 20/03/2025
"If Lutnick's Democratic predecessor, Gina Raimondo, took such a step -- urging Americans to buy stock in a company led by Joe Biden’s top campaign contributor -- it seems likely that more than a few congressional Republicans would call for her resignation..." www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...
msnbc.com
Why is Trump’s Commerce secretary urging the public to buy Tesla stock?
Howard Lutnick told a national television audience to buy a specific stock tied to the sitting president’s top campaign donor.
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Kaja Kallas @kajakallas.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
Ukraine is Europe! We stand by Ukraine. We will step up our support to Ukraine so that they can continue to fight back the agressor. Today, it became clear that the free world needs a new leader. It’s up to us, Europeans, to take this challenge.
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Morgan Till @mtill50.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
Looks like the President of the United States just kicked Zelenskyy out of the WH, a US ally fighting a war of survival:
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Jonathan V. Last @jvl.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
Zelenky stood in front of the American government, in the seat of our democracy, and thanked our entire nation. Every farmer, teacher, engineer, nurse, and cop. Thanked us on behalf of his entire country. youtu.be/7gjwlCe5T6M?...
youtu.be
Watch Zelenskyy's Full Address To Congress
YouTube video by NBC News
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Howard French @hofrench.bsky.social · 08/02/2025
Vintage Onion.
Let the US self destruct.
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Simon Lester @simonlester.com · 29/01/2025
Hard to coordinate a response to China when your allies are coordinating a response against you.
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