Several German states have suspended trips by their quality-control inspectors to Chinese pharmaceutical companies over tightened espionage laws.
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00:00China has responded to concerns raised by EU businesses over its revised anti-espionage
00:06law, which was broadened to include the transfer of so-called work secrets in February of this
00:12year.
00:14The revised law includes further restrictions on the transfer of data to other parties,
00:19but remains vague as to what kind of data is considered a national security threat by
00:24China's government.
00:29Concerns surrounding the law is particularly prevalent in the pharmaceutical industry,
00:33as foreign businesses are afraid of making any attempts to certify manufacturing sites
00:38in China.
00:41The German Medicines Manufacturers Association recently said many of their inspectors refuse
00:47to visit and inspect production sites in China over fears of arrest for spying under the
00:53law.
00:57But China says it's committed to providing foreign business with a market-orientated
01:02and law-based environment.
01:09China is a major supplier of drugs to the EU, and these new restrictions risk exacerbating
01:29the disruption of supply chains.