The fate of Motor Sitch has become in dispute between the United States and China, creating a dilemma for Ukraine, which relies on Washington as the main donor of military aid but at the same time is trying to build closer trade ties with Beijing. .
The United States opposed the takeover of the company by Chinese investors, and in the final days of the Donald Trump administration, Washington added Skyrizon to its list of MEUs – the military end user, with entities whose access to U.S. exports has been restricted – on the grounds that it also deals with product development for use. Military, respectively aircraft engines.
A decree announced by Kiev on Friday freezes Skyrizon’s assets in Ukraine, restricts its commercial operations, and bans capital transfers from Ukraine for a period of three years.
Skyrizon bought a majority stake in the airline, Motor Sich, but it was banned in 2017, in the context of an investigation launched by the Ukrainian security service SBU, a decision in which China announced in December 2020 that it had begun international arbitration against it. Ukraine.
The US embassy wrote earlier in January that “Skyrizon’s investments and massive acquisitions in Ukraine represent an unacceptable risk of diverting its military use to China.”
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce commented that the United States is using “all kinds of excuses” to impede Chinese companies’ activities abroad, and urged Washington to reconsider its stance.
Motor Sich severed ties with its main customer, Russia, after it annexed Crimea in 2014.
