WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Biden administration on Thursday added 14 Chinese companies to a red flag list, forcing U.S. exporters to conduct greater due diligence before shipping goods to them because U.S. officials have been unable to inspect the listed entities.

Being added to the list can potentially start a 60-day clock that could trigger much tougher penalties.

"Enforcing our export controls is a crucial part of protecting American national security," U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves said in a statement following the announcement. "We are committed to using all of the tools at our disposal to establish how advanced US technology is being used around the globe."

ECOM International and HK P&W Industry Co Ltd were among those added to the list and did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said "China strongly deplores and firmly opposes" moves by the United States to "abuse export control measures" and use "state power to suppress and contain foreign companies."

"The U.S. side should immediately stop its wrong practices. China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies," the spokesperson added.

The United States has used restrictions on exports of U.S. goods as a key tool to thwart Beijing's technological advances, ratcheting up tensions between the two countries.

The Commerce department, which oversees U.S. export controls, also added 18 other entities to the list from Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Bulgaria, Canada, Indonesia, Israel, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.