WASHINGTON: The Biden administration added 37 Chinese entities to a trade restriction list on Thursday, including some for allegedly supporting the spy balloon that flew over the United States last year, heightening tensions between Beijing and Washington.

The Commerce Department also said it was adding some units of China Electronics Technology Group to the list for allegedly trying to obtain American technology to support China’s quantum technology capabilities, “which has serious ramifications for US national security” due to their military applications.
Media have said state-owned China Electronics Technology Group is a top military equipment supplier.
China Electronics Technology Group could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Chinese embassy in Washington called the move “blatant economic coercion and bullying in the field of technology,” and said China would resolutely safeguard the lawful rights of Chinese firms and institutions.
The announcement shows the Biden administration is continuing to punish Beijing over the spy balloon, which drifted over the United States in February 2023, fueling political outrage in Washington and prompting Secretary of State Antony Blinken to cancel a trip to China.
That month, the Commerce Department added five companies and one research institute to the entity list for supporting “China’s military modernization efforts, specifically the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) aerospace programs including airships and balloons.”
China’s foreign ministry had said it was a weather balloon that had blown off course and accused the United States of overreacting.
The trade restriction list, known as the entity list, has been used aggressively by the United States to stem the flow of technology to China amid concerns Beijing could use it to bolster its military capabilities.
Being added to the list makes it harder for US suppliers to ship to the targeted entities.
The Biden administration on Thursday also added a handful of Chinese entities to the list for trying to obtain American items for making drones to be used by the Chinese military and others for shipping controlled items to Russia.

UNITED NATIONS: After a US veto foiled the Palestinians’ drive for full UN membership, the General Assembly is expected on Friday to grant them some additional rights in the global body — a symbolic win that has already irked Israel.

With the war in Gaza raging, the Palestinians in April relaunched a request dating back to 2011 to become full members of the United Nations, where their current status is a “non-member observer state.”
To succeed, the initiative needed a Security Council green light and then a two-thirds majority vote in the General Assembly.
But the United States — one of five veto-holding members on the Security Council and Israel’s closest ally — blocked it on April 18.
Now the Palestinians are turning to the General Assembly, where diplomats and observers say a resolution calling for their full UN membership is likely to win broad majority support.
The draft resolution, introduced by the United Arab Emirates, says “the State of Palestine is qualified for membership in the United Nations in accordance with article 4 of the Charter and should therefore be admitted.”
It calls on the Security Council to “reconsider the matter favorably.”
That is unlikely to occur, as the United States opposes any recognition of statehood outside of a bilateral accord between the Palestinians and Israel, whose current right-wing government is adamantly opposed to a two-state solution.
“You could have a sort of diplomatic doom loop, with the Assembly repeatedly calling for the Council to grant Palestine membership and the US vetoing it,” said Richard Gowan, an analyst with the International Crisis Group.
The draft resolution nonetheless gives the Palestinians certain “additional rights and privileges” starting in the next session of the General Assembly, in September.

The text explicitly rules out letting them be chosen to sit on the Security Council or to vote in the General Assembly.
But it would let the Palestinians submit proposals and amendments directly, without having to go through another country, as is the case now.
It would also give them the right to be seated among member states in alphabetical order.
“When you build a building, you build it one brick at a time. If some think it’s symbolic, for us it’s important as we are moving forward toward our natural and legal right to be a full member of the UN,” Palestinian ambassador Riyad Mansour told reporters Thursday.
“The symbolism is what matters,” said Gowan. “This resolution is a very clear signal to Israel and the US that it is time to take Palestinian statehood seriously.”
Israel has criticized the initiative, with ambassador Gilad Erdan saying it will “grant the Palestinian Authority the rights of a state de facto” and violates the UN Charter by “bypassing the Security Council.”
The United States also expressed reservations.
“We’re concerned about the precedent it sets,” said deputy US ambassador Robert Wood.
An earlier draft of the resolution was more vague, granting “the State of Palestine the rights and privileges” necessary to take part in the work of the assembly “on equal footing with Members States” but without specifying what rights.
The new version is in line with the UN charter, said Samuel Zbogar, the ambassador of Slovenia, which currently sits on the Security Council.
“It makes clear what additional rights will Palestine get as observer but it doesn’t touch on those elements that belong only the members,” he added.
As Israel presses on with its war in Gaza against Hamas in response to the October 7 attack, the UN vote will allow the Palestinians to see which countries support them.
It may also show that — were it not for the US veto — the Palestinians would have enough votes in the assembly for full UN membership.
In December, 153 countries out of 193 backed a call for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza war. Ten voted against, including the United States, while 23 abstained.