The Trump administration is putting 28 Chinese agencies and companies on what it calls its Entity List because of alleged human rights violations against Uighurs and other Muslim minorities.
Groups on the list are forbidden from buying various high-tech parts and components from U.S. companies without U.S. government permission.
The Commerce Department says all those on the list — including the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region security bureau — have been accused of being part of the Chinese government’s campaign of repression, arbitrary mass arrests, and spying against Muslim minorities.
“The U.S. government and Department of Commerce cannot and will not tolerate the brutal suppression of ethnic minorities within China,” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said. “This action will ensure that our technologies, fostered in an environment of individual liberty and free enterprise, are not used to suppress defenseless minority populations.”
China denies any deliberate campaign to oppress Muslim minorities, saying it is targeting those it calls religious extremists.
It also dismisses reports of brutal prison camps for Uighurs, calling them education camps and training centers where there is no mistreatment.