US blacklists China, Russia companies over military ties

Washington, December 22

The Trump administration on Monday published a list of Chinese and Russian companies with alleged military ties that restrict them from buying a wide range of US goods and technology.

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Worsening relations

Apart from trade war, tensions between the US and China have escalated over the past year as Trump blamed it for the pandemic. Imposing a security law in Hong Kong and a dispute involving the South China Sea are other reasons behind their bitter relations.

It was reported last month that the US Department of Commerce drafted a list of companies that it linked to the Chinese or Russian military, news that brought a rebuke from Beijing. The final list does not include Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) or the Hong Kong subsidiaries of Colorado's Arrow Electronics and Texas-based TTI Inc, a Berkshire Hathaway electronics distributor. Those companies were on the draft list.

However, Shanghai Aircraft Design and Research Institute, which designs COMAC planes, and Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Co, which manufactures COMAC planes, are on the list.

China urged the US to stop “erroneous actions” and treat all companies in an equal way, foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.

Its Ministry of Commerce later said it firmly opposed the inclusion of Chinese companies on the US list and would take necessary measures to safeguard the linterests of Chinese enterprises.

The final list names 103 entities. Fifty-eight are designated under China, down from 89, and 45 entities are tied to Russia, up from 28.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the action established a new process “to assist exporters in screening their customers for military end users.” — Reuters