Weapon experts are worried that the newly-authorised equipment by the Bush administration for export to China for civilian use could instead end up helping Beijing modernize its military, a media report said.
Equally worrisome, the experts say, is the possibility that China could share the technology with Iran or Syria.
The New York Times said that six months ago, the US government quietly eased some restrictions on the export of sensitive technologies to China, which included advanced engine parts, navigation systems, telecommunication equipment and sophisticated composite materials.
The questions raised about the new policy, the paper said, are in a report to be released soon, possibly this week, by the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, an independent research foundation that opposes the spread of arms technologies.
The report, made available to the newspaper, asserts that two non-military Chinese companies designated as trustworthy, are in fact high risk because of links to the Chinese government, the Peoples Liberation Army and other Chinese entities accused in the past of ties to Syria and Iran.
The new approach was intended to help US companies increase sales of high-technology equipment to China, despite tight curbs on sharing technology that might have military applications.
But while imposing license requirements for the transfer of these technologies, the administration is also validating certain Chinese companies so that they can import these technologies without licenses.
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