US Establishes New Financial Sanctions Framework for 20 Chinese Companies Including Huawei and China Mobile

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi] The United States has classified 20 Chinese companies, including Huawei, as entities related to the People's Liberation Army, laying the groundwork for new financial sanctions.

According to major media on the 25th, the U.S. Department of Defense submitted a list to Congress classifying 20 Chinese companies as owned or controlled by the People's Liberation Army.

The list includes China's largest telecommunications equipment company Huawei, video security company Hikvision, telecom operators China Mobile and China Telecom, and aircraft manufacturer Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).

Although the U.S. is not immediately imposing sanctions on the 20 companies designated as related to the Chinese military, this could serve as the foundation for new financial sanctions the U.S. government is preparing. If President Donald Trump decides at any time, sanctions such as freezing assets or prohibiting financial transactions of these companies within the U.S. could be implemented. Until now, the Department of Defense has faced bipartisan pressure from Republican and Democratic senators to disclose the list of Chinese military-owned companies to prevent "Chinese technological espionage."

The Department of Defense's designation of numerous Chinese companies as related to the People's Liberation Army comes at a time when tensions between the U.S. and China are escalating across various issues including technology, trade, diplomatic policy, COVID-19, and the Hong Kong Security Law. The prevailing assessment is that the U.S. has preemptively laid the groundwork to be able to use retaliatory measures against China at any time.

In particular, since President Trump signed the Treasury Department's '2020 Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act' on the 17th and China issued a warning of retaliation, it is interpreted that the U.S. urgently needed additional cards to play.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.