The European Union prepares its 11th package of sanctions against Russia and may include three companies operating in China for allegedly helping the war effort against Ukraine. Part of these companies would be helping the Russian side to obtain chips to guide cruise missiles, a technology that the West tries to control through sanctions against Moscow.
The information was revealed this Friday (16) by the South China Morning Post. The publication says that the list of companies operating in China that are subject to sanctions would be even greater, but Chinese diplomacy managed to remove five companies from the crosshairs after talks with the European bloc.
China, in turn, promises to retaliate if “evidence” is not presented.
“If the European side imposes sanctions against Chinese companies, without providing us with any solid evidence to show that these companies are engaged in activities that could circumvent EU sanctions on Russia, we will certainly retaliate. As a government, we have an obligation to safeguard the legitimate interests of our companies,” said the Chinese ambassador to the European Union, Fu Cong, in an interview for New Statesman magazine.
::China says Japan’s semiconductor export restrictions are ‘abuse’::
The dispute involves one of the most important elements in the global dispute for hegemony: semiconductors, or chips. In addition to being an essential part of the missiles that the European Union wants to keep out of Russian hands, they are increasingly needed to manufacture technological consumer goods, such as washing machines, cell phones, cars and even weapons of war.
The US applies sanctions against China’s semiconductor sector and governments of several countries invest billions of dollars to guarantee their self-sufficiency in the sector. Today, around 90% of the world’s most advanced chips are produced in Taiwan.
Editing: Patricia de Matos
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
