The Chinese government has approved five trademark applications sought by Ivanka Trump Marks, LLC, the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) revealed on Friday.
The approval came the same week President Donald Trump reversed course on sanctions for Chinese mobile electronics company ZTE.
"This isn’t the first time that Ivanka’s and President Trump’s business connections to China have raised potential ethics issues," CREW noted. "About 72 hours before his announcement, the Chinese government also agreed to loan $500 million to a project in Indonesia in which the Trump Organization is a partner."
The First Daughter's "limited liability corporation" already holds more than a dozen trademarks in China and has multiple pending applications.
"Last year, Ivanka’s business won preliminary approval for three trademarks on the same day that she dined with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago," the watchdog group noted. "Earlier this year, Trump announced tariffs against China that exempted clothing — including clothing imports from Ivanka’s Chinese manufacturers."
The former federal corruption prosecutor who runs CREW noted the impact of the revelations.
"More conflicts of interest and more potential for using the White House for self-enrichment," CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder tweeted.