The Trump administration is considering a ban on US imports of Xinjiang-origin cotton and other products due to allegations of widespread forced labor. The scope of the possible restrictions has not been made public but credible reporting suggests that it could include cotton and tomato products from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) or wider prohibitions covering cotton products from across China and third-countries relying on XUAR-sourced materials or labor.
XUAR produces an estimated 20% of the world’s cotton and 85% of China’s cotton. The far western province is also the site of alleged human rights violations, including the detention and internment of ethnic Uyghur and Turkic Muslim minorities, surveillance of local populations, and use of forced and prison labor from the XUAR.
A ban on Xinjiang-sourced cotton products could radically impact global supply chains and the apparel industry, and further escalate the US-China trade war. The Trump Administration has aggressively employed sanctions and export controls against Chinese officials and entities. This advisory discusses Customs and Border Protection’s processes for implementing and enforcing such an import ban, as well as related investigative and enforcement risks under customs, sanctions, export control, and other laws and regulations
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