JAKARTA - The Chinese government protested the latest decision by the United States (US) to ban the sale of DJI "drones" in the US on the grounds of protecting national security.
"China firmly opposes the US overstepping the concept of national security and making a discriminatory list to target Chinese companies," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press conference in Beijing, Tuesday, December 23, quoted by Antara.
Based on the new regulations of the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Tuesday, December 23, it is requested that US consumers do not buy the next generation of foreign "drones" (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or unmanned aircraft).
The FCC banned the import and sale of all models of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and critical UAS components produced in foreign countries, as well as all communications and video surveillance equipment and services, including DJI, by including them in the so-called "Covered List".
The reason is that the product is considered "to pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of US citizens."
"The US must stop this wrong practice and create a fair, equal and non-discriminatory environment for Chinese companies," Lin Jian said.
The decision was also taken because according to the FCC, the US is preparing to host several major events including the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the America250 celebration, and the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.
Without FCC authorization, new device models cannot be imported, marketed, or sold in the US. The FCC's decision excludes models that have already been approved for sale and are currently in use.
The White House concluded that UAS and critical UAS components produced abroad pose "an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of US citizens."
This week's announcement comes after the National Defense Authorization Act of 2025 passed by Congress last year required a security review of equipment produced by DJI, Autel, and other foreign drone makers by no later than December 23, 2025.
DJI itself controls about 70 percent of the global market, according to data from market research firm Research and Markets. In addition to use in the public sector, Chinese-made drones have also been widely used across the US for a variety of tasks, including infrastructure and construction inspections, plant monitoring, as well as professional and amateur videographers.
Over the past year, DJI has written letters to American officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, welcoming the necessary oversight and scrutiny of its products.
DJI has repeatedly called for a fair, transparent, and evidence-based review of its technology, arguing that national security concerns should be evaluated based on technical superiority, not just country of origin.
However, instead of the comprehensive examination expected by the industry and DJI, the FCC said its decision was based on the assessment of an interagency executive branch body formed by the White House that concluded that "drones" and foreign-made components "could enable continuous surveillance, data exfiltration, and destructive operations in US territory."
Concerns about Chinese-made "drones" and DJI are not new.
Since 2017, the US Army has banned the use of DJI drones on the grounds of cyber security.
In the same year, the US Department of the Interior issued an internal memo that Chinese-made "drones" may send sensitive flight data to their manufacturers in China.
In 2020, DJI was put on the Commerce Department's economic blacklist, or so-called Entity List, for the company's alleged involvement in human rights violations and high-tech surveillance of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang and other minorities in China.
The following year, the US Department of the Treasury also imposed investment restrictions on DJI for similar reasons.
In 2022, the Department of Defense added DJI to a list of companies suspected of cooperating with the People's Liberation Army.
Although DJI has rejected the Pentagon's characterization and sued for its removal, they lost a court case in September this year.
In June 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to accelerate the commercialization of "drone" technology and increase domestic "drone" production in order to counter foreign control or exploitation.
In addition to DJI, other Chinese products included in the FCC "Covered List" are from Huawei, ZTE, Hytera (radio transceiver and radio system manufacturer), Hikvision, Dahua, AO Kaspersky Lab, China Mobile, China Telecom, Pacific Networks' and ComNet's, China Unicom.
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