China adds 6 U.S. firms to unreliable entity list

China has added six U.S. firms to its unreliable entity list, effective from 12:01 p.m. on Thursday, the country's Ministry of Commerce announced on Wednesday.

The six U.S. firms are Shield AI, Inc., Sierra Nevada Corporation, Cyberlux Corporation, Edge Autonomy Operations LLC, Group W and Hudson Technologies Co.

Despite strong opposition from China, these companies have in recent years either participated in arms sales to Taiwan or engaged in so-called military technology cooperation with Taiwan, seriously undermining China's national sovereignty, security and development interests, a spokesperson for the ministry said in a statement.

China holds the six firms accountable for their unlawful activities in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, the statement said.

China always handles issues related to its unreliable entity list prudently and only targets the very few foreign entities that undermine China's national security, the spokesperson said.

"There is nothing to worry about for honest and law-abiding foreign entities," said the spokesperson.

The Chinese government, as always, welcomes companies from all countries to invest and operate in China and is committed to providing a stable, fair and predictable business environment for foreign enterprises that operate in accordance with laws and regulations, said the spokesperson.

(With input from Xinhua)

(Cover: A view of the Taipei 101 skyscraper in Taipei, southeast China's Taiwan region. /VCG)