The US government has blocked technology exports to facilities in China associated with Tianhe-2, the world's fastest supercomputer.
The export restrictions were introduced by the US Commerce Department in a notice on February the 18th, but went on almost unnoticed until this week.
According to the notice, four Chinese supercomputing centers associated with Tianhe-2 were placed on the so-called "Denial List". It means US companies must seek an export license to sell technology for use by the four Chinese centers. But as the notice indicates, such licenses are subject to a policy of denial.
Experts have blasted the move as an apparent attempt to stifle competition in the field of high performance computing from China.