A joint ongoing investigation by several House committees has increased spying concerns after discovering that Chinese-built cargo cranes deployed at U.S. ports contained unexpected communications equipment.
House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark E. Green, R-Tenn., Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee Chair Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., and House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Committee Chair Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., are troubled that every U.S. seaport with Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries cranes has been, or could be, at risk of being compromised by the Chinese Communist Party.
The three chairmen sent a Feb. 29 letter to Shanghai Zhenhua demanding answers regarding numerous findings of the committees' joint investigation.
"In briefings with the committees, U.S. federal law enforcement agencies have confirmed PRC state-owned enterprises are aggressively attempting to generate undue economic influence and establish a strategic presence at certain maritime ports around the country," the chairmen wrote regarding the People's Republic of China.
"The United States is alarmed by mounting evidence that the PRC is solidifying its presence and exerting influence over an industry critically important to the U.S. economy."
The letter details concerns related to cellular modems discovered on ship-to-shore crane components at a U.S. seaport and a cellular modem discovered in another U.S. seaport's server room that houses the cranes' firewall and networking equipment.
As part of another cybersecurity investigation, some of these modems were found to have active connections to the operational components of the cranes.
The chairmen were joined on the letter by Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence member Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas and Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party members, Reps. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., and Rep. Michelle Steel, R-Calif.
Biden administration officials have grown increasingly alarmed by the potential threat of espionage presented by the Shanghai Zhenhua-built cranes. The manufacturer accounts for nearly 80% of ship-to-shore cranes in use at U.S. ports, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In 2021, the FBI found intelligence-gathering equipment onboard a ship that was transporting cranes into the Baltimore port, the Journal previously reported.
The administration last month announced plans to invest more than $20 billion during the next five years to replace foreign-built cranes with U.S.-manufactured ones.
The American Association of Port Authorities, a port industry association, issued a statement to Newsmax Friday denying that there have been any known security breaches as the result of cranes at U.S. ports:
Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Vann recently testified under oath that there have been no known security breaches involving port equipment,” stated Cary Davis, American Association of Port Authorities President and CEO. “Our ports proactively work with the U.S. Coast Guard, other federal law enforcement, and private sector experts to mitigate risks through inspections and defensive measures. This previous incident is actually a positive case study in cyber defense and domain awareness.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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