Congressional Democrats are expressing serious concern over the possibility that the U. S. may soon begin selling advanced chips to one of its most significant geopolitical rivals. Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N. Y. , along with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. , sent a letter on Monday to Under Secretary for Industry and Security Jeffrey Kessler, seeking explanations for why the Trump administration approved the sale of the H200 chip to China. “The President’s directive to approve licenses for the H200 is part of a troubling pattern that undermines our national security, ” the two Democrats stated. Meeks based his inquiry on the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA) of 2018, which governs federal authority over technology exports.

The ECRA mandates that the Department of Commerce must respond to concerns raised by ranking members of the foreign affairs and armed services committees. “In ECRA, Congress declared that U. S. policy is ‘to restrict the export of items which would make a significant contribution to the military potential of any other country, ’” Meeks noted. “Granting licenses for products such as NVIDIA’s H200 chips, which the Justice Department recently labeled as ‘integral to modern military applications, ’ is in direct conflict with the policy Congress established in ECRA. ” The H200 chip, considered one of the world’s most advanced computing devices, is NVIDIA’s flagship product and plays a crucial role in the processing necessary for increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence. NVIDIA was initially required to stop sales to China in 2022 under the Biden administration. “The government indicated that the new licensing requirements are intended to mitigate the risk that these products might be used in, or diverted to, a ‘military end use’ or ‘military end user’ in China, ” the company said in a filing. Like Meeks, other lawmakers are concerned that permitting sales to China will further empower an adversary that has readily weaponized technology. In recent years, Congress banned Chinese-made Huawei devices for government employees and passed legislation last year mandating the divestment of TikTok, citing fears over China’s extensive access to data collected through the popular social media platform. For Meeks, approving the resumption of H200 chip sales—to China and other potential competitors—contradicts this previous cautious stance. “Just last month, you authorized the export of tens of thousands of advanced AI chips, valued at approximately $1 billion, to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, despite serious concerns about these nations’ human rights records and close ties with the People’s Republic of China, ” Meeks wrote. While some Republicans share Meeks’ doubts, others argue that the Trump administration’s reversal aligns with a broader strategy to maintain American competitiveness in coming years. Meeks and Warren have requested the administration provide explanations for the decision by January 12, 2026.