U.S. Steps Up China Pressure Over Surveillance of Uyghurs
- Commerce, Treasury add dozens of Chinese firms to blacklists
- Move comes as U.S. Senate approves forced-labor measure
Demonstrators protest in front of the White House ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden’s virtual summit with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, on Nov. 14.
Photographer: Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty ImagesThe Biden administration ratcheted up pressure on Beijing over its treatment of ethnic and religious minorities, as U.S. lawmakers passed a bill targeting companies that rely on forced labor from the Xinjiang region of China.
The administration on Thursday added 34 entities in China, including 11 research institutes within the Academy of Military Medical Sciences, to its banned entity list, saying they are part of a network that misuses biometric surveillance technology to track and repress ethnic and religious minorities. American companies need a license to do business with those on the Commerce Department’s entity list.