The United States has placed restrictions on six Chinese companies involved in airships and balloons.
Six Chinese companies linked to the Chinese army’s aerospace programs have been barred from acquiring US technology without government permission, according to the US Commerce Department.
The move follows the flight of a Chinese surveillance balloon over the United States last week, which heightened political tensions between the world’s two largest economies.
US fighter jets shot down the balloon, which US officials later claimed was part of China’s extensive surveillance program.
The six companies support the Chinese government’s «modernization efforts, particularly those related to aerospace programs, including airships and balloons, and related materials and components used by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) for intelligence and reconnaissance,» according to a statement from the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security.
