The US government added a dozen other Chinese companies to its restricted trade list, citing national security and foreign policy concerns. Washington says several companies are helping develop China’s military quantum computer program.
The latest move comes with rising tensions between the United States and China over Taiwan’s status and other issues. Trade was 1 of the topics discussed at a virtual summit between the two countries’ heads of state and governments earlier this month.
Eight China-based technology companies have been added to the “entity list” for their alleged role in aiding the Chinese military’s quantum computing efforts. And acquiring or “acquiring” US goods to support military applications.
This list of topics has been increasingly used for national security reasons since the previous Trump administration.
The US Department of Commerce also announced that 16 individuals and legal entities operating in China and Pakistan had been. Added to the list for their involvement in “Pakistan’s unprotected nuclear activity or ballistic missile program.”
A total of 27 new companies from China, Japan, Pakistan, and Singapore were added to the list. Separately, the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology was added to the Ministry’s list of military end-users. However, the list does not provide further details than the production of military equipment.
The new list will help prevent US technology from supporting the development of “China and Russia’s “military and non-proliferation-related activities. Such as Pakistan’s unprotected nuclear activity or ballistic missile program,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement.
Potential suppliers to companies on the list must now apply for a license before selling to them, and the application will most likely be rejected. Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei was added to the list in 2019 for allegedly posing a risk to US national security.
The move separated it from some of its leading suppliers and made it difficult to manufacture phones. The Chinese government has previously denied involvement in industrial espionage.