The US defense department seems to be doubling down on its national security by bolstering the list of companies on the blacklist. These are firms that are suspected to be aiding the Chinese military in several aspects including intel gathering and other related activities. Joining the latest possible banned list is DJI Technology Co, a world-acclaimed drone company that has released countless hit products in the past. Here’s the developing story.
A report by the South China Morning Post has found that DJI Technology Co is one of the latest companies to join the banned blacklist for suspicion of military-use. The drone company has gone under fire for alleged use in Russia’s war against Ukraine, especially after Russia’s embassy in Beijing posted high praises for the company’s drones on social media. This allegedly stirred the pot even more, leading to stricter surveillance.
This isn’t the first time DJI has been on the US’ radar. Last year, the country’s Treasury Department banned citizens from trading the company’s stocks (which was a symbolic move as the company isn’t public), and even further back banned US companies from supplying parts to them. It is undeniable that DJI and its drones are the class leader in the segment worldwide, with a Statista report placing these numbers at around 76%. They’re used in several countries as surveillance bots, rescue operation tools, and a variety of different uses.
DJI was also under fire for rumored involvement in the Xinjiang human rights abuses, which was a horrific case of mass racial discrimination and crimes against humanity for the Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims. You can find the details of IJOP, the central monitoring application here, as it monitored everything from citizens’ applications installed on their phones to their personal relationships and everyday activities. Perfectly-normal actions would be flagged as suspicious and would warrant a visit from law enforcement, often leading to one-sided violence. It is perfectly understandable that the US would include DJI in its banned list, if it did choose to supply tech for these purposes.
The possible next move for the US is to enlist its Commerce Department to restrict US investments and business transactions with DJI. Sound familiar? Yes, this is the very reason why Huawei smartphones don’t have Google services. We would like to clarify that Huawei devices are still being sold in the US, but for items like drones that can be weaponized, getting banned isn’t out of the question. However, this could be unlikely as the country still wants to monitor its rival China’s technological progress, another reason behind possibly loosening restrictions on Huawei after all these years.
The Pentagon “is determined to highlight and counter the … military-civil fusion strategy, which supports the modernization goals of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) by ensuring its access to advanced technologies and expertise are acquired and developed by PRC companies, universities and research programs that appear to be civilian entities”, the department announced.
The world is watching whether or not DJI Technology Co. as a company will get banned in the US. With so many of its products circulating the world right now, everyone wants the truth so that they can make their decision to continue support or to move on to another drone company.
