New Delhi

The head of the US Senate Banking Committee, Sherrod Brown, has called upon the Biden administration to investigate the supposed ties between Nippon Steel and the Chinese steel industry.

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Brown's concerns stem from bipartisan opposition within Congress regarding Nippon Steel's proposed $14.9 billion acquisition of US Steel Corp, saying that there were potential threats to national security.

The call for scrutiny comes after an April report by consultancy Horizon Advisory, which highlighted alleged connections between Nippon Steel and Chinese state-backed steel companies.

"As you examine this deal, I urge you to thoroughly investigate the allegations raised in this report and examine Nippon's ties to the Chinese government and the danger this merger poses to American national and economic security," Reuters quoted Brown as saying.

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He also noted concerns regarding Nippon Steel's historical support for China's steel industry and its current operational presence in the country.

Brown, a Democrat from Ohio, is seeking re-election in the upcoming election on 5th November.

Nippon Steel, however, has vehemently refuted the allegations presented in Horizon Advisory's report.

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The company said that the report was "rife with inaccuracies and misrepresentations" and pressed that its operations in China accounted for 5 per cent of their global production capacity, thus being extremely limited.

Additionally, Nippon Steel said that its investments in China do not grant Chinese partners control over its operations outside of China, including research and development activities.

According to Horizon's report, Nippon Steel has a historical involvement in supporting the development of China's steel industry and maintains operational ties with several Chinese state-backed steel enterprises.

Brown said that Nippon Steel's connections to China's military-civil fusion strategy and its pursuit of global economic influence was a matter of concern.

President Joe Biden previously said that US Steel should remain domestically owned, while his opponent in the upcoming presidential election, former President Donald Trump, promised to block the proposed Nippon Steel acquisition if elected.

Presently, the White House has yet to issue a response to Brown's call for scrutiny, and Horizon Advisory has not provided any comments following requests for clarification.

(With inputs from Reuters)