US President Joe Biden Taps Ex-Pentagon Official for Key China Tech Position
US President Joe Biden on Tuesday nominated Alan Estevez, a former Pentagon official, to be the US Commerce Department’s undersecretary for industry and security, a key post in the US-China tech battle.
The post in the Commerce Department’s once-obscure Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) gained attention in recent years as Washington has escalated its use of export controls to keep China from obtaining US technology.
During the Trump administration, the bureau restricted US sales to China-based Huawei. This hobbled the world’s largest telecommunications equipment maker and gave BIS a prominent role in efforts to limit Chinese companies in telecommunications infrastructure on national security concerns.
Estevez, now an executive with Deloitte Consulting, had a 36-year-career with the Department of Defense. During the Obama administration, he represented the department on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which reviews investments for national security.
“He’s a very solid guy,” said Eric Hirschhorn, who served as the Obama administration’s undersecretary for industry and security.
Estevez, who did not respond to requests for comment, does not have an extensive public record on China export issues. This may help him win confirmation in the US Senate where China hawks have been quick to attack other Biden nominees.
