Is it that hard to see that China might see this as an American company further monopolizing silicon tech, potentially cutting China off from Arm designs.

But more to the point, this is also China. If you want to do business in China, you're going to do as they tell you, or you get the stick. And if you don't like it, what are you going to do?

is this a question or just sarcasm? The post said clearly "The proposed transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals for the U.K., China, the European Union and the United States. Completion of the transaction is expected to take place in approximately 18 months."

China de-facto blocked Qualcomm-NXP merger during a trade talk by not providing a decision before the deadline to the deal.