US sanctions China-based firms for supplying Pakistan's ballistic missile program
- In Reports
- 10:44 AM, Sep 13, 2024
- Myind Staff
The U.S. State Department announced on Thursday that it has imposed sanctions on five China-based companies and one individual for assisting Pakistan’s ballistic missile program. These sanctions were issued under U.S. missile sanctions laws.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated, "The Department of State is taking action against five entities and one individual that have been involved in the proliferation of ballistic missiles and controlled missile equipment and technology." He added that the Beijing Research Institute of Automation for Machine Building Industry (RIAMB) has been designated under Executive Order 13382, which targets proliferators of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their delivery systems.
RIAMB has worked with Pakistan’s National Development Complex (NDC), which the U.S. says is involved in developing Pakistan’s long-range ballistic missiles. This led to the sanctions against RIAMB under missile technology control laws.
Additionally, the U.S. imposed sanctions on three other China-based companies—Hubei Huachangda Intelligent Equipment Company, Universal Enterprise Limited, and Xi’an Longde Technology Development Company Limited (Lontek)—as well as one Chinese individual, Luo Dongmei (also known as Steed Luo), and the Pakistan-based company Innovative Equipment.
Miller emphasized the U.S. will continue to take action against such activities: "The United States will continue to act against proliferation and associated procurement activities of concern, wherever they occur."
The sanctions were imposed because these entities and individuals "knowingly transferred equipment and technology controlled under the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) Annex, in support of MTCR Category I missile programs, to a non-MTCR country."
Earlier, the U.S. had sanctioned four other entities for supplying missile-related technology to Pakistan’s long-range missile program. These included Belarus-based Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant and three Chinese companies: Xi’an Longde Technology Development Company Limited, Tianjin Creative Source International Trade Co Ltd, and Granpect Company Limited.
In April, U.S. State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel stressed, "We’re going to continue to disrupt and take actions against proliferation networks and concerning weapons of mass destruction procurement activities wherever they may occur... Just let me say, broadly, we advise anyone considering business deals with Iran to be aware of the potential risk of sanctions." He added that these sanctioned entities were based in China and Belarus.
Image source: ANI
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