China’s Commerce Ministry added 14 EU entities to its export control list, banning shipments of dual-use items like rare earth elements and drone components. The measure directly retaliates against the EU’s 21st Russia sanctions package adopted July 23, which targeted 14 Chinese and Hong Kong firms for supplying Russia’s military-industrial complex.

The blacklisted EU entities include major defense and technology firms: Germany’s Rheinmetall AG, France’s Cavok UAS (drone developer), Italy’s Lafert S.p.A. (electric motors), Poland’s Vigo Photonics S.A. (infrared detectors), Czech Tatra Trucks, Dutch IHC Merwede (shipbuilding), and Poland’s Wrocław University of Science and Technology. Additional entities span optics, lasers, and semiconductor firms from Germany, France, Italy, Bulgaria, and Lithuania.

The restrictions expose Europe’s dependence on Chinese inputs for defense manufacturing, though China’s rules allow exceptional license approvals and do not constitute a total drone export shutdown