US sanctions Chinese entities linked to spy balloon program

The Biden administration added on Friday six Chinese entities linked to Beijing’s suspicious surveillance balloon program to an export blacklist.

The US Department of Commerce said it added the five companies and a research institute to support “China’s military modernization efforts, especially the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aerospace programs, including airships and balloons.”

Between the entities listed Beijing Nanjiang Aerospace Technology and China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 48th Research Institute.

Earlier, the United States said it would consider taking action against Chinese military-linked entities that supported the flight of a spy balloon into American airspace last week.

On Friday, the Biden administration also added Dongguan Lingkong Remote Sensing Technology, Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group, Tian-Hai-Xiang Canton Aviation Technology and Shanxi Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group to the list.

Blacklist it is difficult for companies to obtain exports of American technology. US President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump have used the list to hit Chinese companies and block Beijing from advancing militarily.

Washington has said it is convinced that the manufacturer of the Chinese balloon, shot down by the American army last weekend off the east coast of the United States, has a “direct relationship” with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Chinese. an official said in a statement.

The Chinese balloon shot down off South Carolina was part of a extensive spy program that China has been conducting for “several years,” the Pentagon said on Wednesday.

When similar balloons flew over the United States four times during the presidencies of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, the United States did not immediately identify them as Chinese spy balloons, said Brigadier General Pat Ryder, attached press releases from the Pentagon. But he said ‘subsequent intelligence analysis’ allowed the US to confirm it was part of a Chinese spy effort and to learn “much more” about the program.

The most recent incident balloon was shot down by a US military fighter on Saturday. The Navy and Coast Guard are still working to recover pieces of the downed balloon so they can be analyzed.

China claims it was a civilian balloon used for weather research and has strongly criticized the United States for shooting it down.

The Secretary of State, Anthony BlinkHe noted that the United States had notified dozens of countries of the program, which officials said was active on multiple continents.

“America is not the only target”he said during a press conference during which he was accompanied by the Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg. Blinken said he and Stoltenberg discussed “the systematic and tactical challenges” China poses to the alliance and the importance of combating them.

The countries that the United States says have been targeted by the Chinese program would include countries that have been monitored in the past, as well as NATO allies.

off Caroline from the southMeanwhile, Navy divers began pulling pieces of the Chinese spy balloon from the depths of the ocean on Tuesday, using sophisticated drones to locate the wreckage.

FBI and Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents catalog the remains and transport them for further processing.

(With information from Bloomberg and Reuters)

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