US to Tell Countries to Pick a Side in The AI Race. Choosing China Could Cost Them Access to The Washington Coalition.

The United States is preparing to force dozens of countries to make a consequential choice in the escalating artificial intelligence rivalry between Washington and Beijing, warning partners that they cannot participate in a U.S.-led technology coalition while simultaneously joining China's competing AI framework.

According to a U.S. official and an internal draft reviewed by Reuters, the State Department has prepared a letter for the 35 countries that signed the U.S. "AI Opportunity Statement" in June. The message would effectively ask governments to choose which technology ecosystem they intend to support as the world's two largest economies compete for dominance in AI.

"To be part of everything is to be part of nothing," the draft letter says. "Signature of the Pax Silica Declaration is not merely a membership subscription, but a commitment." The document urges countries to "choose deliberately" and says participation in Pax Silica "cannot be held alongside membership in duplicative initiatives whose expectations conflict with our own." The draft does not explicitly name China.

Reuters could not determine when the letter would be sent, and the undated document could still be revised. The State Department declined to comment to Reuters on what it described as "purportedly leaked internal documents."

Washington launched Pax Silica last year as part of an effort to secure supply chains considered essential to advanced AI, including semiconductor chips and critical minerals. Roughly two dozen countries have joined, including major U.S. allies Japan, Australia and South Korea.

But Kazakhstan has emerged as a test of whether countries can maintain relationships with both emerging AI blocs. The Central Asian country, which holds potentially important critical mineral reserves, joined Pax Silica and was hailed by the United States in June as its first Central Asian member. Kazakhstan has also joined China's rival initiative, making it the only country currently known to participate in both.

U.S. officials want to make clear that countries "can't have it both ways," the U.S. official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. "It's difficult to see how a country can credibly position themselves as trusted partners in one technology ecosystem while simultaneously signing up for an initiative designed by China to advance a competing vision for AI," the official said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping launched the "World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization" in July, promoting China's open-weight AI technology as an alternative to U.S. influence over the sector.

Chinese developers have rapidly narrowed the performance gap with proprietary systems from U.S. companies including OpenAI and Anthropic. Beijing, however, is also considering restrictions on overseas access to some leading Chinese models as national security concerns increasingly intersect with the country's AI ambitions.

China criticized Washington's effort to make countries choose between the two systems. "Such actions will only stifle global AI advances and serve no one's interests," a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington told Reuters, adding that Beijing opposes politicizing trade and technology.

The Kazakh Embassy did not respond to Reuters' request for comment. Pax Silica is designed to encourage participating countries to pursue joint projects and coordinate export controls while reducing dependence on adversaries for semiconductors, AI models and critical minerals.

Those minerals have become particularly important in the U.S.-China confrontation. China has used its dominant position in several critical-mineral supply chains as leverage during the tariff conflict launched last year by President Donald Trump, while Washington has accelerated efforts to develop alternative supplies domestically and through allies.

Pax Silica members can access shared investment opportunities for AI-related projects. Countries signing the broader AI Opportunity Statement, meanwhile, have expressed a "common purpose" and "shared vision" with Washington.