Republicans sound alarm over Chinese government-linked farmland purchase near North Dakota air base

FIRST ON FOX: Fifty-one Republican lawmakers are sending a letter to a few of President Biden’s Cupboard secretaries warning that nationwide safety is threatened by a Chinese language Communist Social gathering (CCP)-linked firm’s efforts to purchase farmland close to an Air Pressure base in North Dakota.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., led the letter with 50 of his colleagues to Secretaries Lloyd Austin, Janet Yelle, and Tom Vilsack in regards to the land acquisitions close to North Dakota’s Grand Forks Air Pressure Base by Chinese language producer the Fufeng Group.

The letter, solely obtained by Fox Information Digital, shall be despatched to the three secretaries and warns of the “alarming growth” for U.S. nationwide safety by permitting the Fufeng Group to buy the land so near the bottom. 

“In accordance with the United States-China Financial and Safety Evaluation Fee, the Grand Forks Air Pressure Base has distinctive intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities, making the lately bought land the best location to carefully monitor and intercept army exercise,” the lawmakers wrote.

“The presence of a CCP-affiliated company close to a army set up probably undermines the integrity of our high-capability army bases, jeopardizing our strategic pursuits,” they warned.

Gimenez and his Republican colleagues warned that the CCP-linked agency “may have potential advantageous alternatives to perpetrate espionage, together with actions and actions carried out beneath business cowl or auspices.”

NORTH DAKOTA COMMUNITY FIGHTS TO STOP CHINESE COMPANY FUFENG FROM OPENING CORN MILL NEAR US AIR FORCE BASE

Heritage Motion vice chairman Garrett Bess advised Fox Information Digital the “risk from the Chinese language Communist Social gathering is essentially the most important and consequential worldwide risk that the U.S. faces, and CCP acquisition of land, significantly close to U.S. army installations, is a direct danger to America’s nationwide safety.”

“Eliminating this danger requires an aggressive plan to forestall and punish malicious land use that threatens U.S. pursuits,” Bess mentioned. “We applaud Consultant Gimenez for asking the Biden administration robust questions and pushing them to undertake a extra aggressive posture towards the CCP.”

The Republicans additionally mentioned they “are involved in regards to the precedent this land buy will set and its capacity to function the mannequin for our adversaries to encroach on American safety, significantly by means of purchases of farmland in our congressional districts housing a number of army installations,” comparable to Homestead Air Reserve Base (HARB) in Gimenez’s Sunshine State district.

“At a time when the USA is engaged in nice energy competitors with China, we should make the most of each software at our disposal to guard and defend the integrity of our army and nationwide safety, preserve army dominance, and maximize our international army readiness,” the letter reads.

The lawmakers additionally warned that acquisitions “of this magnitude” additionally “pose a risk” to America’s “meals safety,” not simply nationwide safety.

“In accordance with the USA Division of Agriculture (USDA), firstly of 2021 international traders held a stake in roughly 37.6 million acres of U.S. agricultural land,” they wrote. “This pattern is predicted to extend over the subsequent few years, elevating considerations in regards to the detrimental potential implications it should have on home meals manufacturing and nationwide meals safety.” 

“This, coupled with USDA’s absence from everlasting membership on the Committee on Overseas Funding in the USA (CFIUS), is regarding, because the Division ought to have some jurisdiction over the evaluation of agricultural land acquisitions that elevate nationwide safety considerations.”

Gimenez and his colleagues known as on the division heads to “take efficient motion in addressing the potential nationwide safety dangers that seem to come up” from the acquisition.

The billionaire proprietor of the Chinese language firm behind a latest tried land acquisition in Texas close to the Laughlin Air Pressure Base served within the Chinese language army and has deep ties to the CCP.
(Related Press)

Additionally they despatched a number of inquiries to the division heads, together with on what “actions are being taken by the DoD in cooperation with the U.S. army companies and army base instructions to know and assess potential dangers with international investments in shut proximity to U.S. army bases and different amenities.”

Gimenez is joined on the letter by a mess of Republican lawmakers, together with Reps. Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey, Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa, Scott Franklin of Florida and Lisa McClain of Michigan.

The CCP-linked farmland acquisition is removed from the primary land purchase by the Chinese language authorities and the purchases have been closely scrutinized for the nationwide safety dangers introduced as they’ve been authorized beneath each the Biden and Trump administrations.

A wind power farm venture close to Del Rio, Texas, was reportedly nixed by the Texas authorities after it was revealed the 130,000 acre — across the dimension of Tulsa, Oklahoma — was solely miles away from the Laughlin Air Pressure Base the place pilots are educated.

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It was additionally revealed the Chinese language billionaire who owns the corporate behind, GH America Vitality, previously served within the Chinese language army and has deep ties to the CCP.

The purchases have raised crimson flags in Washington, with Texas Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales, who represents Del Rio, introducing a invoice to curb international adversaries buying land wherever close to U.S. army installations.

The Fufeng Group paid $2.3 million to buy the 300 acres of land simply 12 miles away from the Grand Forks Air Pressure Base. The corporate plans to speculate $700 million to open the mill.

A spokesperson for the Pentagon advised Fox Information Digital Austin shall be responding to the authors of the letter, as typical along with his correspondence. The USDA and Treasury Division didn’t instantly reply to Fox Information Digital’s requests for remark.