China Blacklists 40 Japanese Firms Over
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- China's Commerce Ministry blacklisted 40 Japanese entities on June 29, 2026—20 added to a dual-use control list, including multiple Mitsubishi Corporation divisions, and 20 placed on a watch list that includes Mitsui E&S, Fujitsu, and Komatsu divisions.
- Chinese exporters dealing with the listed firms must now apply for special licences, submit risk assessment reports on the Japanese buyers, and provide written pledges that dual-use items won't be used for military purposes.
- Beijing framed the controls as targeting Japan's "reckless pursuit of new militarism," urging Tokyo in a Commerce Ministry statement to "recognize its mistakes" and "return to the right track."
- Tensions trace to PM Sanae Takaichi's implication last year that Japan could intervene militarily if China attacked Taiwan; her government is now deploying longer-range missiles on remote islands and promoting lethal weapons exports under a revised policy.
- Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force deployed a Type-12 missile launcher on Minamitorishima, the country's southernmost remote island, on the same day—described as a response to Chinese military activity expanding into the Pacific.
- This is Beijing's second round of export controls on Japanese firms, after blacklisting 20 and watchlisting 20 others in February, with the Commerce Ministry accusing Japan of continuing "down the wrong path."
Why it matters: The measures weaponize routine bilateral trade, forcing named Japanese majors like Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, and Komatsu to clear licences and risk assessments on dual-use goods. With Japan hardening its southernmost island on the same day, the dispute over Taiwan policy is now bleeding directly into commercial supply chains.
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