A House committee has recommended a U.S. ban on foreign
contractors that sell advanced weapons to China.
The House Armed Services Committee has recommended barring the Defense
Department from purchasing goods or services for five years from foreign
companies that sell advanced weapons to Beijing. The recommendation was
included in a report circulated to House members on May 23.
The 2006 defense authorization bill, set at $441.6 billion, contained a
provision that would "create disincentives for potential arms exports to
China by denying sellers access to Department of Defense procurement
opportunities."
Congressional sources said the House provision could harm Israeli
defense contractors, Middle East Newsline reported. A range of Israeli companies, including the state-owned
Israel Aircraft Industries, have maintained projects in China.
The provision would also bar the U.S. defense secretary from
contracting a foreign individual or organization "which has received a
subsidy from the government of a foreign country that is a member of the
World Trade Organization."
"This section would prohibit the Secretary of Defense from purchasing
goods or services from any entity that knowingly transfers an item that is
on the United States Munitions List to the People's Republic of China," a
section of the bill, entitled "Procurement Sanction against Foreign Persons
that Transfer Certain Defense Articles and Services to the People's Republic
of China," said.
Congressional sources said the provision would immediately ban the
European EADS from Pentagon contracts. EADS, with defense contracts in
China, has been competing with Boeing for a range of U.S. aircraft projects,
including a fuel tanker for the U.S. Air Force.
"The committee is concerned that China's military modernization now
exceeds its legitimate security needs, is undermining the balance of power
that has maintained peace and security in the Western Pacific for decades,
may be undermining deterrence in the region, and may be contributing to the
increasingly bellicose nature of Chinese foreign policy," the provision,
termed Section 1212, said.
A Senate version does not contain a ban on foreign defense companies
that trade with China. The bill was expected to be discussed at a
House-Senate conference later this week. The full House was scheduled to
vote on the defense bill on Wednesday.
In 2004, IAI launched a maintenance and upgrade project of the Harpy
unmanned aerial vehicle sold to Beijing in 1997. The project sparked a feud
with the Pentagon, which reduced relations and joint projects with Israel.
In April 2005, the Pentagon said it suspended information-sharing with
Israel in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Officials said they wanted to
prevent the transfer of F-35 data to China.
The Washington-based Jamestown Foundation said in a report that the
United States has succeeded in blocking objectionable Israeli military exports
to China. The report said U.S. policy has, in effect, halted Sino-Israeli
military relations.
"The inevitable outcome of the Harpy crisis will be an end to Israeli
arms sales to the PRC," the report said. "Negotiations concerning the
upgrade deal could drag on for several months but ultimately, barring a
reversal of events and a dramatic change in Washington's strategic thinking
about Beijing, the China market is lost for Israel's defense industries for
the foreseeable future."
