Ernst, Stefanik Prevent U.S. Tech from Equipping CCP Spyware
Demand DoD counter the full risk Chinese-controlled drones pose to U.S. security interests.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and House Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) led a bipartisan group of lawmakers in calling on the Department of Defense (DoD) to prevent U.S. technology from equipping Chinese-backed drones and demanding answers to ensure this national security threat is taken seriously.
In 2020, Da Jiang Innovations (DJI), a Chinese drone company, was added to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Entity List, requiring additional export licensing because the company uses its product to enable Chinese state-sponsored oppression in Xinjiang.
“The U.S. Department of Defense should not be recommending approval of export control licenses for U.S. technology that advances DJI’s capabilities, which are actively being leveraged by our adversaries in attacks against our allies and partners, from Eastern Europe to Israel,” the lawmakers wrote.
In the letter, the lawmakers pointed out that DJI aids America’s adversaries, including Iran-backed Hamas and Russia, in carrying out attacks on our closest allies, facilitating human rights abuses of the Uyghurs, and supporting the Chinese military.
“When an American company applies to export to a company on the Entity List, such as DJI, the DoD has the specific responsibility to examine the potential national security risks of that proposed export. We are requesting clarification on whether the DoD supported the export of U.S. technologies that have enabled DJI to assist the CCP in brutally repressing the Uyghur population and equipping Iranian-backed Hamas and Russian military forces with drones,” the lawmakers continued.
As a matter of national security, they requested answers to whether the DoD would allow for the export of U.S. technology or intellectual property to DJI, if DoD raised any national security concerns related to any issued licenses, how far up these decisions were reviewed, and if anyone had concerns about this export.
“The Entity List is intended to prohibit American companies from exporting technology that will enable our adversaries to advance their ability to undermine U.S. national security. However, America’s adversaries are using DJI drones that contain American cutting-edge technology to harm U.S. national security interests and the security of U.S. partners,” they concluded.
Read the full letter here.
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