House Panel Advances Sanctions Bills Aimed at China, Russia

The House Foreign Affairs Committee on May 16 approved several bills that could impose sanctions on China, Russia and the Houthis and tighten export controls on China.

The committee endorsed the Economic Espionage Prevention Act, which would authorize sanctions on foreign adversaries that support Russia’s defense industrial base, violate U.S. export controls or steal U.S. intellectual property. Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., said the bill would help counter weapons proliferation that often involves American technology, including computing chips. He said the legislation would also update the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to allow "greater flexibility to pursue actions against China and other foreign adversaries."

"In order to expedite the Russian defeat in Ukraine and also deter a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, we must begin jointly addressing this new adversarial axis of power that threatens global peace and our way of life," McCormick said.

The committee also approved the Rosatom Sanctions Enforcement Act, which would sanction the Russian state-owned nuclear energy company (see 2403120064), and the Sanction Russia Nuclear Safety Violators Act, which would sanction entities or people that endanger the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine (see 2305120015).

Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., the committee’s ranking member, said “Rosatom is a bad actor that is actively aiding the Russian war effort. Its role in the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant takeover is, by itself, immediately worthy of sanctions” because Russia’s “dangerous actions” at the facility have increased the risk of a “catastrophic nuclear fallout.”

The committee advanced the Remote Access Security Act, which its sponsors said would close an export control loophole that has allowed China to use cloud service providers to access advanced U.S. computing chips remotely (see 2405060048). McCormick said many Chinese companies have “exploited this loophole” and then used it “to develop artificial intelligence technology and strengthen the Chinese military.”

The committee also approved the Combating Houthi Threats and Aggression Act, which would sanction the Houthis for their recent attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. Rep. Kathy Manning, D-N.C., said the Iran-backed group's “reckless” attacks have slowed global commerce and humanitarian aid and destabilized the region.

The committee didn't vote on the bills individually but included them in a larger “en bloc” package that it approved by voice vote. At the time of publication, a recorded vote was expected in the evening.