China protests sanctions on firms that assist Russia

BEIJING — Beijing on Saturday protested U.S. sanctions against additional Chinese companies over attempts to evade U.S. export controls on Russia, calling it an illegal move that endangers global supply chains.

The U.S. Commerce Department on Wednesday put five companies based in mainland China and Hong Kong on its “entity list,” barring them from trading with any U.S. companies without gaining a nearly unobtainable special license.

Meanwhile, Chinese Defense Minister Gen. Li Shangfu will visit Russia next week for meetings with counterpart Sergei Shoigu and other officials, China’s Defense Ministry said Friday.

Li’s visit underscores China’s engagement with Russia. China has refused to criticize Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and blamed the U.S. and NATO for provoking Moscow. But Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Friday said China won’t sell weapons to either side in the war.

Washington has been tightening enforcement of sanctions against businesses it sees as providing aid to Russia in its war against Ukraine, forcing them to choose between trading with Moscow or with the U.S. A total of 28 entities from countries ranging from Malta to Turkey to Singapore were added to the list.

A statement from China’s Commerce Ministry said the U.S. action “has no basis in international law and is not authorized by the United Nations Security Council.”

“It is a typical unilateral sanction and a form of ‘long-arm jurisdiction’ which seriously damages the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises and affects the security and stability of the global supply chain,” the statement said.

The latest sanctions were leveled against Allparts Trading Co., Ltd.; Avtex Semiconductor Limited; ETC Electronics Ltd.; Maxtronic International Co., Ltd.; and STK Electronics Co., Ltd., registered in Hong Kong.