As a rebuke to China’s human rights abuses against its Uyghur Muslim population, the Biden administration is expected to announce a ban on Thursday on some solar goods made in the Xinjiang region, Bloomberg reported.
Muslim minorities like the Uyghurs live in the Xinjiang region and have been subjected torture and persecution. It’s also the same region where a piece of infrastructure that’s used for semiconductors and solar panels is made, called polysilicon. The Xinjiang region makes about half of the world’s supply of polysilicon.
The proposed ban is similar to one on exports that under the Trump administration targeted Xinjiang’s tomatoes and cotton, according to Politico.
Because the export would target a piece of infrastructure used in solar panels, it could affects Biden’s renewable energy goals.
It’s unclear what other types of materials would be included under the ban.
The Commerce Department will also blacklist five Chinese entities, according to Bloomberg. The entities are Hoshine Silicon Industry (Shanshan) Co. Ltd., Xinjiang Daqo New Energy Co. Ltd, Xinjiang East Hope Nonferrous Metals Co. Ltd., Xinjiang GCL New Energy Material Technology Co. Ltd, and Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.