Security News > 2020 > December > US Blacklists Chinese Companies Including Chip Giant SMIC

The United States on Friday announced it has imposed export controls on 77 Chinese companies including the country's biggest chipmaker, SMIC, restricting its access to US technology over its alleged ties to China's military.

The announcement in the final weeks of President Donald Trump's term comes after relations between Washington and Beijing soured under his administration, which saw the US start a trade war with China and expand its list of sanctioned entities to a few hundred Chinese companies and subsidiaries.

In a statement, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the designations, which restrict US companies' abilities to do business with the firms, are over an array of charges including human rights abuses, the activities of the Chinese military, particularly in the South China Sea, as well as theft of US technology.

In a call with reporters, a senior Commerce Department official said Washington has evidence that SMIC has worked with the Chinese military on developing short- and medium-range ballistic missiles and exoskeletons for soldiers, but had been in talks with SMIC for months on a way to avoid the designation.

The designation means US companies must apply for a license before exporting to SMIC, and specifically targets the Chinese firm's ability to acquire materials for producing chips of 10 nanometers or smaller, the best class in the industry.

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