The US government's rebuff of Bain Capital and Huawei's joint bid for 3Com is raising questions about whether Chinese companies can close deals in Washington, writes Stephanie Kirchgaessner.

The transaction, which may still be resubmitted to Cfius, was just one deal that has met opposition in recent years. In 2005, CNOOC, the Chinese oil company, failed take over Unocal of the US after a congressional uproar. In 2003, Hutchison Whampoa, the Hong Kong group, dropped its bid for a stake in Global Crossing, the telecoms group, after it became clear that the US would reject the deal.