Washington, DC - The US government on Thursday announced the banning of five additional Chinese companies under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List.

A government posting released on Thursday has revealed that five companies have been added to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List (UFLPA), effectively banning them from any operations in the US.

The ban targets Hong Kong-based Rare Earth Magnesium Technology Group Holdings, Century Sunshine Group Holdings, Zijin Mining Group Co., Kashgar Construction Engineering Co., and Xinjiang Habahe Ashele Copper Co.

Each company added to the UFLPA is unable to import any goods, including those mined, produced, or manufactured, into the US.

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The notice filed in the Federal Register bans the companies for "working with the government of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to recruit, transport, transfer, harbor or receive forced labor or Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz," or any other persecuted group.

It details the reason for each individual ban, mostly citing each company's use of products and resources that have been acquired within the autonomous region, located in China's west.

There are now more than 70 entities listed in the UFLPA, with imposed bans on companies linked to the cotton, automotive and solar industries, among others.

On Thursday, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington expressed dismay and anger towards the addition of five companies to the UFLPA, and denied allegations of forced labor.

"The so-called 'forced labor' in Xinjiang is nothing but an egregious lie propagated by anti-China forces, and a tool for US politicians to destabilize Xinjiang and contain China’s development," the spokesperson was cited by Reuters as saying.

"China will continue to firmly safeguard the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies."

In June, after the US added a number of other Uyghur-linked companies to the register, China's foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian accused the US of human rights violations and spreading "false stories on Xinjiang."