中興如何成為了中美地緣政治對(duì)弈的核心？

President Trump has said that he will help save ZTE, a Chinese electronics maker. The company was on the brink of collapse after United States officials punished it last month for breaking American sanctions against countries including Iran and North Korea.

特朗普總統(tǒng)已表示，他將幫助挽救中國(guó)電子產(chǎn)品制造商中興通訊(ZTE)。美國(guó)官員上個(gè)月懲罰中興之后，這家公司已處于崩潰的邊緣，懲罰的原因是中興違反了美國(guó)對(duì)包括伊朗和朝鮮在內(nèi)的國(guó)家的制裁。

Here’s a look at how a Chinese electronics maker with an awkward name came to be at the center of a geopolitical chess match between Beijing and Washington.

下面介紹一下這家英文名稱(chēng)略不順口的中國(guó)電子產(chǎn)品制造商是怎樣變成北京與華盛頓地緣政治對(duì)弈的核心的。

What Is ZTE?

ZTE是什么?

Zhongxing Telecommunications Equipment isn’t a household name in most places. Known as ZTE, it is probably best known for making cheap smartphones that are mostly sold in developing countries, though it also sells them in the United States.

中興通訊設(shè)備在世界上大多數(shù)地方并不是一個(gè)家喻戶(hù)曉的名字。這家英文簡(jiǎn)稱(chēng)ZTE的公司，以生產(chǎn)主要是在發(fā)展中國(guó)家銷(xiāo)售、但在美國(guó)也有銷(xiāo)售的廉價(jià)智能手機(jī)而聞名。

But in the telecommunications world, the ZTE name carries significant weight. It is one of two Chinese companies — Huawei is the other — that sells equipment for cellular networks. It has about 75,000 employees and says it does business in more than 160 countries.

然而，中興的名子在電信技術(shù)領(lǐng)域仍有相當(dāng)大的分量。它是銷(xiāo)售蜂窩網(wǎng)絡(luò)設(shè)備的兩家中國(guó)公司之一，另一家是華為。中興有約7.5萬(wàn)名員工，自稱(chēng)在160多個(gè)國(guó)家有業(yè)務(wù)。

That makes it an important geopolitical pawn for Beijing, both as an innovator and as a builder of state-funded projects overseas. If China wants to improve ties with a government in the developing world, it often offers loans that can be used to set a ZTE-powered cellular network.

這讓它成為北京的地緣政治上的一個(gè)重要棋子，它既是一個(gè)創(chuàng)新者，也是國(guó)家投資海外項(xiàng)目的建設(shè)者。如果中國(guó)想改善與某個(gè)發(fā)展中國(guó)家政府的關(guān)系的話，政府通常會(huì)向該國(guó)提供用于采購(gòu)中興設(shè)備建立蜂窩網(wǎng)絡(luò)的貸款。

Longer term, China hopes that companies like ZTE will become powerhouses that can help the country wean itself from a reliance on American tech firms, which Beijing views as security threats because of the possibility that they could help Washington spy. 它是如何違反法令的?

How Did It Break Sanctions?

從長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)來(lái)看，中國(guó)希望中興這樣的公司能夠成為幫助中國(guó)擺脫對(duì)美國(guó)技術(shù)公司依賴(lài)的主力軍，北京把美國(guó)技術(shù)公司視為安全威脅，因?yàn)樗鼈冇袔椭A盛頓對(duì)中國(guó)進(jìn)行間諜活動(dòng)的可能性。

Tech supply chains are so intertwined these days that just about every product that ZTE makes has some American components or software in it — think microchips, modems and Google’s Android operating system. So if ZTE sells a smartphone to North Korea, it might also be selling a Qualcomm chip inside that phone. That’s illegal under American sanctions that prohibit the sale of United States tech to embargoed countries.

技術(shù)產(chǎn)品的供應(yīng)鏈如今已變得如此地緊密相聯(lián)，以至于中興生產(chǎn)的差不多每個(gè)產(chǎn)品中都有美國(guó)的零部件或軟件——比如微芯片、調(diào)制解調(diào)器和谷歌的Android操作系統(tǒng)。所以，如果中興把一部智能手機(jī)賣(mài)給朝鮮的話，它可能也在那部手機(jī)里把一個(gè)高通芯片賣(mài)給了朝鮮。那是非法的，因?yàn)槊绹?guó)的制裁禁止向禁運(yùn)國(guó)家銷(xiāo)售美國(guó)技術(shù)產(chǎn)品。

When the Commerce Department released its findings against ZTE in 2016, it took the rare step of disclosing evidence of the company’s guilt. One document, signed by several senior ZTE executives, cautioned that American export laws were a risk because the company was selling to “all five major embargoed countries — Iran, Sudan, North Korea, Syria and Cuba.”

美國(guó)商務(wù)部在2016年公布對(duì)中興的調(diào)查結(jié)果時(shí)，采取了一個(gè)罕見(jiàn)的做法，商務(wù)部披露了中興違規(guī)行為的證據(jù)。一份有幾位中興高管簽名的文件警告說(shuō)，美國(guó)的出口法對(duì)公司來(lái)說(shuō)是一種風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，因?yàn)楣驹谙?ldquo;所有五個(gè)主要禁運(yùn)國(guó)家——伊朗、蘇丹、朝鮮、敘利亞和古巴”銷(xiāo)售產(chǎn)品。

A second company document featured flow charts for best practices to circumvent American sanctions. Last year, ZTE acknowledged its guilt and paid a $1.19 billion fine.

另一份公司文件中給出了繞過(guò)美國(guó)制裁的最佳實(shí)踐流程圖。去年，中興承認(rèn)了自己違規(guī)，并支付了11.9億美元的罰款。

How Did the U.S. Hobble ZTE?

美國(guó)如何處置中興?

The Commerce Department wasn’t done with that hefty penalty.

美國(guó)商務(wù)部并沒(méi)有因?yàn)榫揞~罰款而就此了事。

Last month, officials said ZTE had violated its agreement with the United States because it didn’t punish senior management for having violated the sanctions. Instead, the Commerce Department said, ZTE paid them bonuses and lied about it. As punishment, the department forbade American technology companies from selling their products to ZTE for seven years.

商務(wù)部官員上個(gè)月說(shuō)，中興違反了與美國(guó)的協(xié)議，因?yàn)橹信d沒(méi)有對(duì)違反制裁的高管進(jìn)行懲罰。商務(wù)部說(shuō)，不僅沒(méi)有懲罰，中興還向他們發(fā)了獎(jiǎng)金，并在發(fā)獎(jiǎng)金這件事上撒謊。作為懲罰，商務(wù)部禁止美國(guó)技術(shù)公司在未來(lái)七年向中興銷(xiāo)售產(chǎn)品。

That means no Qualcomm chips or Android software for its phones, and no American chips or other components for its cellular gear. Analysts estimate that four-fifths of ZTE’s products have American companies. ZTE went into a tailspin, saying last week that it had shut down major operations.

這意味著，中興的手機(jī)不能用高通公司的芯片或Android軟件，中興的移動(dòng)設(shè)備也不能用美國(guó)的芯片或其他部件。據(jù)分析人士估計(jì)，中興80%的產(chǎn)品里有美國(guó)公司的東西。中興進(jìn)入失控狀態(tài)，上周宣布已停止主要經(jīng)營(yíng)活動(dòng)。

Why is Trump Intervening?

為什么特朗普會(huì)介入此事?

The American president hasn’t explained his decision to try to help the company, other than to cite the potential for lots of Chinese workers to lose their jobs. But ZTE’s troubles come at a complicated moment.

美國(guó)總統(tǒng)并沒(méi)有解釋他試圖幫助中興的決定，只是提到許多中國(guó)工人有失去工作的可能性。但中興的困境出現(xiàn)在一個(gè)復(fù)雜的時(shí)刻。

In normal times, the company’s fate would be a legal matter for the Commerce Department. But the Trump administration is pressuring China to make trade concessions. It may also need Beijing’s help to strike a deal with North Korea as Washington and Pyongyang plan a high-profile meeting next month in Singapore.

在正常情況下，這家公司的命運(yùn)原本是商務(wù)部的一個(gè)法律問(wèn)題。但特朗普政府正在迫使中國(guó)做出貿(mào)易讓步。特朗普政府在與朝鮮達(dá)成協(xié)議上可能也需要北京方面的幫助，華盛頓和平壤正計(jì)劃于下月在新加坡舉行舉世矚目的峰會(huì)。

By offering to intervene, Mr. Trump has effectively suggested that ZTE’s punishment could be a bargaining chip in negotiations with China, rather than a matter of law enforcement. It isn’t clear whether he will follow through on his offer to help the company or whether he will get something in return if he does.

特朗普愿意出面干預(yù)的表示實(shí)際上已經(jīng)暗示，對(duì)中興的懲罰可能是與中國(guó)談判的討價(jià)還價(jià)籌碼，而不是一個(gè)執(zhí)法問(wèn)題。目前還不清楚，特朗普是否會(huì)把要幫助中興的表示付諸行動(dòng)，也不清楚，如果他那樣做的話，是否會(huì)得到某種回報(bào)。

A One-Off or Part of a Trend?

是一次性的還是趨勢(shì)下的一部分?

The fight over ZTE is emblematic of deeper issues in the relationship between China and the United States, the world’s two largest economies.

圍繞著中興的角逐，是世界上兩個(gè)最大的經(jīng)濟(jì)體、中國(guó)和美國(guó)的關(guān)系上更深層次問(wèn)題的象征。

Neither country trusts the equipment made by the other, particularly after Edward Snowden disclosed how United States intelligence officials turned to American companies to snoop.

中美兩國(guó)都不信任對(duì)方制造的設(shè)備，尤其是在愛(ài)德華·斯諾登(Edward Snowden)披露了美國(guó)情報(bào)官員為進(jìn)行窺探向美國(guó)公司求助之后。

With a technological cold war already getting frosty, such squabbles over intertwined supply chains and diverging interests are likely to proliferate.

隨著一場(chǎng)技術(shù)冷戰(zhàn)已進(jìn)入嚴(yán)冬，這種圍繞著緊密相聯(lián)的供應(yīng)鏈與分歧的利益的爭(zhēng)論可能會(huì)越來(lái)越多。