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Customs Agent informed the ATF that a man named Hammond Ku had thousands of Chinese weapons stored in his warehouse in the San Francisco area. Apparently, many of them were worried, because the ban led some Norinco employees to take drastic measures. Even supporters of Clinton’s 1994 decision claimed that it would be a net positive for the Chinese economy and that only Norinco had anything to be worried about. banned the importation of “assault rifles” in 1989.ĭespite barely receiving a footnote mention in their respective news stories, the effects that these bans had on American gun owners were greater than the impact either had on the Chinese or Russian economies. Cheap Chinese arms and ammo were reportedly very commonly found in the hands of criminals in this time period, a concern that was present since at least President Bush Sr. Unlike Biden’s recent sanctions, President Clinton was at least more transparent about the decision, claiming that it was made not only to punish China’s human rights abuses but also to combat growing crime rates in the United States. Much like Biden’s recent sanctions on Russian arms and ammo, Clinton’s critics pointed out that the harm imposed by the sanctions on the Chinese economy will pale in comparison to the benefits they’ll feel from renewing their MFN status. In 1994 President Clinton decided to extend China’s Most Favored Nation (MFN) trading status, with the notable exception of most arms and ammunition produced by leading Chinese defense conglomerates Norinco and Polytech. Similar measures were taken by President Clinton in the early 1990s against Chinese arms companies, creating a situation very similar to the one we see today. This is not the first time an administration has sidestepped Congress to pursue a gun-control agenda, however. He reaffirmed his position in a June 23rd speech where he said that his administration would be encouraging Congress to pass more gun control but would be pursuing their goals in any way they can, implying the use of means besides legislation. This would be consistent with promises made since President Biden’s campaign first began. This has led many to believe that the true reasoning behind the ban was to punish law-abiding American gun owners and not the Russian government. President Biden’s critics were quick to point out that his recent move to waive sanctions on the Russian company responsible for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline will help the Russian economy far more than this ammo ban could ever hinder it. The official reason given for the new sanctions was that they were in response to the Russian government’s alleged poisoning of Alexei Navalny. On August 20th the Biden administration announced new sanctions to be placed on Russia,, banning the importation of Russian-made arms and ammunition into the United States. Following the recent Russian ammo ban, let’s look back at how a similar situation in the early 1990s led to smuggling, sting operations and the end of Norinco in the United States.