The US Department of Commerce announced on Wednesday (October 8th) that it has added a dozen Chinese companies to its export control blacklist. These companies were targeted for assisting in the procurement of US electronic components that were found to be used in unmanned drones operated by Iran’s proxies such as Hamas and the Houthi rebels. The announcement came into effect starting from Wednesday.
According to the announcement published by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the Department of Commerce in the Federal Register, a total of 26 entities and three addresses have been added to the Entity List for export control. Apart from Chinese companies, the list also includes companies based in Turkey and the UAE.
The BIS announcement stated that 16 Chinese companies and three Chinese addresses were blacklisted.
Ten Chinese enterprises were added to the Department of Commerce’s export control blacklist for assisting in the purchase of components used in weaponized unmanned drone systems operated by Iran’s proxies including the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Another Chinese company was blacklisted for its involvement in an illegal procurement network that obtained and supplied components to a front company of the Iran Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force (IRGC-QF), including drone parts.
Five more Chinese companies were blacklisted because on or around October 7, 2023, the Israeli Defense Forces confiscated a large number of armed drones operated by Iran’s proxies like Hamas, and found multiple US-origin electronic components inside. The investigation revealed that these entities assisted in the purchase and procurement of some of these electronic components.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, causing 1,200 casualties. Israel subsequently declared war on Hamas, leading to the ongoing Gaza conflict. Both sides are currently engaged in Gaza peace talks in Egypt.
In addition, the Department of Commerce on Wednesday also added three addresses in China to the blacklist. These addresses were linked to the procurement network of Emily Liu. Liu has been sanctioned by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for providing or attempting to provide support to the Iranian company Shiraz Electronics Industries (SEI). OFAC designated SEI as controlled or owned by the Iranian Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics.
The companies on the blacklist are considered a threat to US national security and foreign policy interests. These entities will need to obtain licenses in advance to acquire products controlled by the US Export Administration Regulations (EAR). The applications for these licenses will be subject to a presumption of denial, which means they are highly likely to be rejected.
The following are the 16 Chinese companies newly added to the blacklist by the Department of Commerce: