US Reportedly Sanctions Malaysian Semiconductor Company
Jatronics Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian based semiconductor company based in Kuala Lumpur, has been reportedly slapped with sanctions by the United States for allegedly shipping important electronic parts and components to Russia.
Based on reporting by Al Jazeera, Jatronics Sdn Bhd was among 300 entities on the US sanctions list over their links to Russia’s military suppliers. The report also noted that electronic components that are being shipped to Russia could potentially prolong the conflict in Ukraine.
According to the report, Russian customs data shows that one of the Russian companies Jatronics has supplied since Moscow initiated hostilities in February 2022 was already sanctioned by Western governments for its alleged ties to Russia’s defence industry.
The latest round of US sanctions which were announced on 1 May is slated to freeze any US assets held by the targeted entities and bar anyone under US jurisdiction from dealing with them. This would essentially shut them out of the US financial system.
Al Jazeera reports that a US spokesperson has confirmed that some of the materials that Jatronics have shipped to Russia included Tier 1 items on the US Department of Commerce’s List of Common High-Priority Items.
The US Commerce Department describes Tier 1 items as those “of the highest concern due to their critical role in the production of advanced Russian precision-guided weapons systems, Russia’s lack of domestic production, and limited global manufacturers.”
The report also revealed that the Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS), a Washington-based think tank, had analysed Russian customs data and found that Jatronics made more than 50 deliveries to companies in Russia worth more than US$3 million between April 2022 and September last year. Some of the materials that were shipped included microchips, semiconductors, and silicon wafers, which are the raw materials for making semiconductors.
This comes after Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim recently positioned Malaysia as a neutral hub for the semiconductor supply chain amidst the ongoing US-China tech war. This move is aiming to attract around US$100 billion (approximately RM500 billion) in new investments.
