WASHINGTON: The United States restricted trade with five companies on Wednesday (Apr 10) that it said were helping produce and procure drones for use by Russia in Ukraine and by Iran-backed Houthis in Red Sea shipping attacks.
The companies from Russia and China were among 11 additions to the Commerce Department’s “Entity List”, which means suppliers need licenses before shipping goods and technology to them.
Russia has intensified its drone and missile strikes against Ukrainian energy facilities in recent weeks, causing significant damage and threatening a repeat of the blackouts experienced in the first year after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
The Commerce Department added a Chinese entity, Jiangxi Xintuo Enterprise Co, to support Russia’s military through the procurement, development, and proliferation of Russian drones, it said.
Shenzhen Jiasibo Technology Co of China was cited for being part of a network procuring aerospace components, including drone applications, for an aircraft company in Iran. Three Russian entities – Aerosila JSC SPE, Delta-Aero LLC, and JSC ODK-Star – were added for being part of the network.
