WASHINGTON, D.C. — Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) released the below statement following news last week that the Department of Commerce placed Chinese drone maker, Autel, on its blacklist which prohibits American companies from doing business with the company. The Department’s decision came after bipartisan demands last year for the Biden administration to investigate Autel. In the November 2023 request, Moolenaar and Stefanik unveiled Autel’s deep connections to the Chinese military.
“Following our advocacy, the Commerce Department added malign Chinese controlled drone maker, Autel, to its government blacklist. No American should support companies like DJI and Autel that are arming Communist China and have the ability to spy on American soil. While this is a strong first step, the Senate must now take up and pass the House-passed Countering CCP Drones Act and ban the introduction of new CCP-linked drones from American skies.”
Background:
In April 2023, Congresswoman Stefanik introduced the Countering CCP Drones act with former Select Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI). The legislation would add Chinese drone company Da-Jiang Innovations (DJI) to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Covered List, meaning that DJI technologies would be prohibited from operating on U.S. communications infrastructure.
DJI poses an unacceptable national security risk, as Chinese law provides the Chinese government with power to compel DJI to participate in and assist in its espionage activities. The FCC has implemented changes to ban equipment authorizations for companies on a Covered List of communications equipment and services that pose an unacceptable risk to national security of the United States. This bill would add DJI to that list.
Over 50% of drones sold in the U.S. are made by Chinese-based company DJI, and they are the most popular drone in use by public safety agencies. It has been reported that the Chinese government is an investor in DJI, directly contradicting DJI’s public statements regarding their relationship with the Chinese government.
Currently, Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, Hangzhou, and Dahua are entities included on the FCC’s Covered list. Adding DJI to the Covered List would be consistent with actions taken throughout the U.S. Government, including:
In August 2017, an Intelligence Bulletin from a Department of Homeland Security Field Office stated DJI is likely providing sensitive U.S. data to the Chinese Government.
In the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, Congress banned the Department of Defense from purchasing and using drones and components manufactured in China.
In December 2020, the Department of Commerce added DJI to its “Entity List” for its role in supporting China’s human rights abuses.
In July 2021, the Department of Defense stated mitigating the threats posed by DJI is a priority for the Department.
In December 2021, the Department of the Treasury identified DJI as part of the Chinese Military-Industrial Complex, specifically due to their support of biometric surveillance and tracking of ethnic and religious minorities in China.
