Los Angeles Port Head Says Chinese Cranes Pose Security Risk
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The head of the busiest U.S. maritime gateway said Chinese-made cranes pose a potential risk to national security, but a shortage of other countries that build the giant container-moving machines makes it challenging to address the vulnerability.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e collecting data, they鈥檙e looking at information,鈥 , executive director of the , said in an interview Feb. 22 on Bloomberg Television鈥檚 Surveillance. 鈥淲hat they鈥檙e using that data for is the question.鈥
Biden administration officials are concerned that more than 200 ship-to-shore cranes at U.S. ports are manufactured by China and can be serviced and programmed remotely, creating a security vulnerability. Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co. 鈥 known as 鈥 is the dominant player in the global market for gantry cranes used to load and unload cargo ships.
鈥淚t is a risk, but who else makes the cranes?鈥 Seroka said. Among the questions is how to 鈥渃reate that industry here in the United States,鈥 he said, adding that 鈥渢his is a great watch-out for all of us in the port industry.鈥
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Feb. 23 at a regular press briefing in Beijing that 鈥渢he claim that China uses cranes at ports to collect information which threatens security is completely absurd.鈥
鈥淲e firmly oppose the U.S. overstretching the concept of national security and abusing state power to go after Chinese products and companies,鈥 she said.
A U.S.-based subsidiary of Japanese manufacturing conglomerate is planning to increase its domestic crane capacity in the U.S., with hopes of accessing some of the $20 billion in federal money for port infrastructure authorized across legislation signed during Joe Biden鈥檚 presidency.
Shares of Mitsui E&S jumped about 26% in trading in Tokyo on Feb. 22.
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