On Thursday, the Joe Biden administration has barred 28 Chinese firms from American investment by listing them in the blacklist.
This can be seen as a sign of Washington’s continued pressure campaign against China over their links to Beijing’s military-industrial complex. A tough line on China has rare cross-party support in the US Congress.
Meanwhile, US President Biden has pledged to take more diplomatic line with China on several issues including defense and technology.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a routine press briefing that
severely undermines normal market rules and order
damages… the interests of global investors, including US investors
Joe Biden’s list added 28 Chinese firms to the Donald Trump’s blacklist of 31 Chinese firms taking the total to 59 firms.
The ban prohibits Americans from buying stakes in the blacklisted Chinese companies that are deemed to be supplying or supporting China’s military and security apparatus.
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According to a White House statement, the latest batch of sanctions target companies involved in Chinese surveillance technology that are used to
facilitate repression or serious human rights abuses,
undermine the security or democratic values of the United States and our allies,
The initial list published under Trump’s administration included major Chinese companies that were into telecoms, construction and technology such as – China Mobile, China Telecom, video surveillance firm Hikvision, and China Railway Construction Corp.
On Thursday, Beijing repeated its outrage at the Donald Trump’s-era blacklist and vowed to protect Chinese companies rights, claiming the blacklist was “politically motivated” and ignores the facts and actual situation of the firms involved.
Biden’s new order will see the Treasury Department create a list of firms that would be hit with financial penalties for their links with China’s defence and surveillance technology sectors. Also, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control will add new firms after consulting the departments of Defense and State.
Biden is expected to sign the order this week.