China codifies supply chain security as national security statute

Beijing's new 18-point supply chain security regulation, effective March 31, formally elevates industrial supply chain protection to a national security issue and grants the State Council authority to investigate and retaliate against foreign entities imposing discriminatory restrictions. Articles 14-15 explicitly authorize countermeasures including special charges, entry bans, and export restrictions against any actor deemed to threaten China's supply continuity. This is not a policy signal but an enacted legal architecture — it institutionalizes economic warfare reciprocity at the statutory level, creating a permanent retaliatory toolkit that mirrors Western entity-list and export control mechanisms. The timing, amid the Iran war and ahead of the Xi-Trump summit, signals Beijing is hardening its defensive posture regardless of diplomatic optics.