In the 2020s, Japan was making major investments in its semiconductor industry as tensions grew between the US, its major security ally, and China, its largest economic partner. Washington pressured Tokyo to align with US export controls intended to prevent China from accessing advanced chips and the equipment needed to make them. Tokyo, worried about losing access to the Chinese market and potential economic retaliation, had to weigh up the risks of tightening its export controls or resisting US pressure.