THE United States said Friday it would add 33 Chinese firms and institutions to an economic blacklist.

The U.S. Commerce Department said in a statement that it will add 24 Chinese governmental and commercial organizations to the Entity List “for engaging in activities contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States.”

The listings include Qihoo360, a major Chinese cybersecurity firm taken private and delisted from the Nasdaq in 2015; Softbank Group Corp.-backed CloudMinds that operates a cloud-based service to run robots; Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Harbin Engineering University and Harbin Institute of Technology.

Being listed on the Entity List will result in restrictions over sales of U.S. goods shipped to the companies and some more limited items made abroad with U.S. content or technology. Companies can apply for licenses to make the sales, but they must overcome a presumption of denial.

In an online statement from Qihoo360, the largest cybersecurity firm in China noted that it firmly opposes this irresponsible accusation, lacking any credible evidence, and opposes the U.S. Commerce Department’s move to politicize commercial activities and technological R&D.

The new listings follow a similar October 2019 action when the U.S. added 28 Chinese public security bureaus and companies — including some of its top artificial intelligence startups and video surveillance firms.(SD-Agencies)