Skip to main content

US sanctions China for buying Russian fighter jets

The Trump administration imposed sanctions on the Chinese military on Thursday for buying fighter jets and missile systems from Russia, in breach of a sweeping US sanctions law punishing Moscow for meddling in the 2016 US election.
The US State Department said it would immediately impose sanctions on China's Equipment Development Department (EDD), the branch of the Chinese military responsible for weapons and equipment, and its director, Li Shangfu, for engaging in "significant transactions" with Rosoboronexport, Russia's main arms exporter.
The sanctions are related to China's purchase of 10 SU-35 combat aircraft in 2017 and S-400 surface-to-air missile system-related equipment in 2018, the State Department said.
They block the Chinese agency, and Li, from applying for export licenses and participating in the US financial system.
It also adds them to the Treasury Department's list of specially designated individuals with whom Americans are barred from doing business.
The administration also blacklisted an additional 33 people and entities associated with the Russian military and intelligence, adding them to a list under the 2017 law, known as the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA.
CAATSA also seeks to punish Russia for its aggression in Ukraine and involvement in Syria's civil war.
Doing significant business with anyone on that list can trigger sanctions like those imposed on China.
Some of those added to the list, which now contains 72 names, were indicted in connection with Russian interference in the 2016 US election, the official said.
A federal special counsel is leading a criminal investigation of Russian interference in the US election, and any possible cooperation with Trump's presidential campaign.
One US administration official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, said the sanctions imposed on the Chinese agency were aimed at Moscow, not Beijing or its military, despite an escalating trade war between the United States and China.
"The ultimate target of these sanctions is Russia. CAATSA sanctions in this context are not intended to undermine the defense capabilities of any particular country," the official told reporters on a conference call.
"They are instead aimed at imposing costs upon Russia in response to its malign activities," the official said.
In Moscow, Russian member of parliament Franz Klintsevich said the sanctions would not affect the S-400 and SU-35 contracts.
"I am sure that these contracts will be executed in line with the schedule," Klintsevich was quoted as saying by Russia's Interfax news agency. "The possession of this military equipment is very important for China."
Security analysts in Asia said the move appeared to be largely symbolic and would serve only to push Moscow and Beijing closer together.
"The imposition of US sanctions will have zero impact on Russian arms sales to China," said Ian Storey, of Singapore's ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute.
"Both countries are opposed to what they see as US bullying and these kind of actions will just push Beijing and Moscow even closer together," he said, adding that Moscow needed Chinese money and Beijing wanted advanced military technology.
The measures come as the Trump administration pursues a variety of strategies to clamp down on China and faces growing pressure to respond strongly to US intelligence agency reports that Russia is continuing to meddle in US politics.
Members of Congress, including many of Trump's fellow Republicans, who passed the sanctions bill nearly unanimously, have repeatedly called on the administration to take a harder line against Moscow.
Administration officials said they hoped the action against EDD would send a message to others considering buying the S-400.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Virus kills Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang, 61

Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang, a former chief of internal security who became one of the most high-profile leaders in the communist-ruled country, died on Friday after an illness, state media said. Quang's rise, at a time of growing dissent on social media and challenges to the party's authority, signalled limits to the country's liberal agenda, despite a growing openness to social change and sweeping economic reform, experts say. The 61-year-old died in a military hospital in Hanoi of a "serious illness despite efforts by domestic and international doctors and professors," Vietnam Television said. He had hosted a reception for China's Supreme Court chief on Wednesday, state-owned newspaper  Vietnam News  said. Rumours of his illness had circulated on social media for months. At one of Quang's last appearances, during a visit to Hanoi by Indonesian President Joko Widodo on September 11, the President appeared visibly unwell and stumbled a...
Post a Comment
Read more

How an Israeli Solar Solution Can Benefit the U.S. and the World

America is undergoing a quiet clean-energy revolution. Renewable resources such as solar, wind, hydro- and nuclear power produce more than a  third  of the country’s energy, and this sector is growing at a rate several times  faster than the national economy. Many would be surprised to learn that this revolution has its roots in research done in the 1950s in Israel, where home use of solar energy has been the norm for decades. As we seek alternative sources of energy to power our society, policymakers should look to Israel for concrete ideas on utilizing solar-based innovations to reduce our carbon footprint and help average Americans reduce their bills. Today, nearly every state in the union harnesses the power of the sun. Forty-two states have a total of 1,721 solar-powered electric plants, which produce 1 percent of the country’s energy. Four states in particular have made impressive strides in exploiting the sun: California gets 10 percent of its electricity from s...
Post a Comment
Read more