China vows to retaliate after US blacklists companies over alleged abuses of Uyghurs, other Muslim ethnic minorities

China vows to retaliate after US blacklists companies over alleged abuses of Uyghurs, other Muslim ethnic minorities

PTIUpdated: Sunday, July 11, 2021, 07:36 PM IST
article-image
No details were given, but China has denied allegations of arbitrary detention and forced labour in the far western region of Xinjiang and increasingly responded to sanctions against companies and officials with its own bans on visas and financial links. | AFP Photo

China on Sunday said it will take "necessary measures" to respond to the US blacklisting of Chinese companies over their alleged role in abuses of Uyghur people and other Muslim ethnic minorities.

The Commerce Ministry said the US move constituted an "unreasonable suppression of Chinese enterprises and a serious breach of international economic and trade rules." China will "take necessary measures to firmly safeguard Chinese companies' legitimate rights and interests," the ministry's statement said.

No details were given, but China has denied allegations of arbitrary detention and forced labour in the far western region of Xinjiang and increasingly responded to sanctions against companies and officials with its own bans on visas and financial links.

The U.S. Commerce Department said in a statement Friday that the electronics and technology firms and other businesses helped enable "Beijing's campaign of repression, mass detention and high-technology surveillance" against Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.

The penalties prohibit Americans from selling equipment or other goods to the firms. The United States has stepped up financial and trade penalties over China's treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, along with its crackdown on democracy in the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong.

The Chinese government since 2017 has detained a million or more people in Xinjiang. Critics accuse China of operating forced labor camps and carrying out torture and coerced sterilisation as it allegedly seeks to assimilate Muslim ethnic minority groups.

The US Commerce Department said 14 companies were added to its Entity List over their dealings in Xinjiang, and another five for aiding China's armed forces.

"The Department of Commerce remains firmly committed to taking strong, decisive action to target entities that are enabling human rights abuses in Xinjiang or that use U.S. technology to fuel China's destabilizing military modernisation efforts," Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement posted on the department's website.

RECENT STORIES

Thousands To Lose Jobs: Microsoft Hits Workforce With Another Massive Layoff In Just Months

Thousands To Lose Jobs: Microsoft Hits Workforce With Another Massive Layoff In Just Months

Starlink Free To Roll Out India Services Once In-SPACe Approvals Are Done: Union Minister...

Starlink Free To Roll Out India Services Once In-SPACe Approvals Are Done: Union Minister...

Gold Extends Gain For 2nd Straight Day, Climbs ₹500 Per 10 Grams; Silver Trades Flat

Gold Extends Gain For 2nd Straight Day, Climbs ₹500 Per 10 Grams; Silver Trades Flat

Apple Faces Trouble In India, Chinese Workers Leaving Foxconn Factory

Apple Faces Trouble In India, Chinese Workers Leaving Foxconn Factory

Tata Steel Confident To Complete Green Steel Transition In Europe As Planned: Chairman N...

Tata Steel Confident To Complete Green Steel Transition In Europe As Planned: Chairman N...