China's tech drain can't be stopped but can be delayed, says expert – Nikkei Asia

TOKYO — Even as Europe, Japan and the U.S. tighten exports of critical technologies to China on security grounds, the outflows have not stopped — as Nikkei revealed recently with its investigative report. How and to what extent should companies be prepared to address the implications of surreptitious technology drains to China?

Professor Heigo Sato of Takushoku University, an expert on export controls, told Nikkei that companies face a significant dilemma and it is “difficult to perfectly prevent technology drain.” Here is a translated and edited excerpt: