Revising the 1976 International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) has dashed these plans. This law prohibits the most common USbuilt widgets from being launched aboard Chinese rockets.
The increase in far-reaching unilateral sanctions means that the law of another country applies to you. In some cases, we may agree that using sanctions is appropriate, but the increasing generalised dragnet reach and use of sanctions is not appropriate. Businesses can unwittingly be caught in this net unexpectedly, adding a new level of risk to international business opportunities.
Two examples illustrate the reach of these US-originated nets and the way they inhibit what we would consider a normal business with China. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) had plans to send a UAEdeveloped moon rover with China’s Chang’e 7 moon mission in 2026. The collaboration would have seen the UAE’s Rashid 2 rover delivered to the moon’s surface in the unmanned mission to the lunar south pole, intended to lay the foundations for an international research station.
