The European Union is preparing to sanction Chinese companies for the first time for collaborating with the “Russian military-industrial complex” in the war of aggression against Ukraine. A maneuver that in all probability will trigger tensions between Brussels and Beijing at a time when several European leaders have tried to get President Xi Jinping to mediate and pressure Moscow to withdraw its troops from Ukraine.
The restrictive measures against Chinese companies (seven in total, according to the Financial Times) constitute the main novelty of the eleventh package of sanctions of the EU against Russia that has been proposed by the Commission on Ursula von der Leyen.
The package, which has to be unanimously approved by the Member States, will be discussed for the first time by the ambassadors of the 27 this Wednesday. The president will hold her fifth visit to kyiv since the outbreak of the war coinciding with the day of Europe with the purpose of staging again its support for Ukraine.
[China ignora la petición de Macron y Von der Leyen para que obligue a Putin a salir de Ucrania]
In this eleventh package of sanctions, the priority of the Community Executive is hit non-EU governments and companies that are helping Moscow to get around the unprecedented sanctions so far approved by the EU and its Western allies. Until now, community leaders have avoided acting against Beijing on the grounds that they are not aware that it is providing military aid to Russia.
“What I can confirm is that this package does indeed focus on the implementation of sanctionstheir effectiveness and how to prevent them from being circumvented and prevent products whose export to Russia has been banned from ending up finding a way into the Russian military-industrial complex”, explained the Commission spokesperson, Eric Mamer. Unlike previous occasions, Brussels has not wanted to detail its proposals.
Four of the Chinese companies to be included in the EU blacklist have already been sanctioned by the United States, according to the FT. Is about 3HC Semiconductors, King Pai Technology, Sinno Electronics and Sigma Technology. Specifically, 3HC (a computer chip maker) is charged with “attempting to evade export controls and purchasing or attempting to purchase items of US origin to support Russia’s military-industrial base.”
For its part, King-Pai supplies microelectronics to Russia which “has defense applications including cruise missile guidance systems.”
The EU plans to sanction several companies in Iran involved in the manufacture and shipment of war drones to Russia.
Finally, the eleventh package includes a new general sanctioning regime that will allow the EU to punish non-EU countries or companies that help Moscow circumvent Western sanctions. However, Member States will have to approve individual measures taken under this regime.
