China urges US to stop 'unjustly suppressing' Chinese firms

Washington accused Chinese firms of supporting 'Beijing’s surveillance of ethnic minorities and for facilitating Iran’s energy trade

Beijing on Friday expressed “strong dissatisfaction” with the latest US move to sanction more Chinese companies. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning urged the US at a news conference in Beijing to "stop abusing various excuses to unreasonably suppress Chinese firms." The US has added over 20 Chinese entities to its trade blacklist, citing potential national security risks, according to the Chinese daily Global Times. However, the US State Department said on Thursday that it sanctioned six entities involved in the transport or sale of Iranian petroleum or petrochemical products. Washington has accused these firms of supporting “Beijing’s surveillance of ethnic minorities and for facilitating Iran’s energy trade in violation of US restrictions.” They include a Vietnam-based company, two China-based companies, two Iran-based firms, and one UAE-based company. The designated entities are accused of engaging in significant transactions for the transportation of petroleum and petrochemical products from Iran. In addition, the US State Department said it is identifying 20 vessels as blocked property of these sanctioned entities.