In a statement released on Tuesday through its Bureau of Industry and Security, the US Commerce Department said that it has added a total of 36 entities from nine countries to the US Entity List.

Among the 36, the US Commerce Department said that six were added "specifically for their continued support of Russia's military efforts since the imposition of export controls in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine", and are thus subject to severe restrictions on access to US technologies and items.

Five of the six are based in China.

"We will not hesitate to act, regardless of where a party is located, if they are violating US law," said US Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration Thea D. Rozman Kendler.

Of course, they won't. The US loves to wield such high-handed long-arm jurisdiction.

Every government exercises some degree of control over which countries or companies to trade or not to trade with. But such control does not extend to dictating such approval to others. The US' long-arm jurisdiction in this case transgresses the legitimate right of companies of other countries to engage in normal trade.

Beijing and Moscow have made no secret of their shared dislike of what in their eyes is arrogant Western approach to international relations, but that doesn't mean Beijing is providing Moscow with military assistance.

As of now, there is no valid legislation, domestic or international, preventing Chinese enterprises from maintaining normal business ties with Russian entities. Even for their sanctions to be more effective, the US and its allies and partners should resort to a multilateral approach, rather than relying solely on unilateral actions.

The US likes to talk of countries abiding by the rules. But the rules that it is referring to are US rules.

There are no UN-authorized sanctions in place, and the Chinese government has therefore not imposed any restrictions on normal trade with Russia.

As US Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod was quoted as saying in the statement released by the Bureau of Industry and Security, "Our rules are clear, and we will not hesitate to take action when parties backfill in violation of them."

The latest move is another demonstration of how the US abuses its state power to further its own geopolitical agenda

Washington should take practical steps to promote a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine crisis, instead of trying to use sanctions to subjugate countries to its will and hijack trade to make illegal gains for the US.