China

US House Report: PRC Seaport Cranes Pose National Security Threat

SEP 13 2024·Updated SEP 15 2024

Story

Above: Cranes stand over shipping containers at the Port of Newark on March 26, 2024 as seen from Bayonne, New Jersey. Image credit: Spencer Platt/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images

The Facts

Two US House committees, the Homeland Security Committee and the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), have claimed that Chinese-made cargo cranes are equipped with surveillance technology to spy on Americans and attack US infrastructure.
New York Post
The CCP committee stated that the cranes, which are manufactured by the state-controlled Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co. Ltd. (ZPMC), are equipped with "cellular modems" that are "not requested by U.S. ports or included in contracts."
The Hill
The report further claimed that it's an "open secret" among US port operators that ZPMC "pressure[s]" them into allowing the company remote access to the cranes for what it claims is diagnostic monitoring.
Nextgov.com
The committees have asked the Department of Homeland Security to "immediately issue guidance to all US ports to disassemble any connections of ZPMC," which owns 80% of all US cargo cranes.
New York Post
While ZPMC was previously in contact with the committees earlier this year, it has since stated that it can only submit written answers to questions if the CCP signs off. This also comes after Pres. Joe Biden in February allocated $20B to bolster port infrastructure.
Nextgov.com
This report wraps up a week of China-focused lawmaking in the US House. 25 bipartisan bills were passed — including the Biosecure Act — which would ban US pharmaceutical companies that receive federal funding from working with five Chinese biotech firms.
Cen
Select Committee on the CCP

Sources Split

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The Spin

Anti-China narrative

China is the greatest threat to America, which is why this committee, with broad bipartisan support from the rest of the House, worked together to pass these bills. As China threatens everything from stealing Americans' biological data and placing surveillance cranes in ports to flying military drones in American airspace, the US government is taking a stand against this adversarial regime.

Select Committee on the CCP

Pro-China narrative

The only issue upon which Republicans and Democrats can sadly agree is that China should be portrayed as an enemy. As Pres. Joe Biden publicly promises to improve relations with Beijing, his colleagues in both parties are simultaneously holding an entire week's worth of meetings aimed at demonizing China. These political stunts will hurt both the American people and Washington's relationship with Beijing.

China Daily