China Land Purchase Near Military Base Threatens Nat'l Security, Air Force Says
The U.S. Air Force last week said it disagreed with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. determination last year not to intervene in China-based Fufeng Group's purchase of North Dakota farm land (see 2212150035). Although CFIUS concluded it didn’t have jurisdiction, the deal presented “a significant threat to national security with both near- and long-term risks of significant impacts to our operations in the area,” Andrew Hunter, the Air Force’s assistant secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics, said in a letter to Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D.
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Hunter said Hoeven and Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., had asked the Air Force to provide their “view on the national security implications” of the deal, which gave Fufeng control of land near the Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. Hunter said the base “is the center of military activities related to both air and space operations.”
The Grand Forks City Council voted unanimously this week to cancel the Fufeng Project, which could cause the city to “refuse to connect industrial infrastructure and deny building permits” for the project, KX News reported Feb. 6. But those actions “do not affect the land ownership as the company will still legally own the land they have purchased.”
Other lawmakers have criticized the CFIUS decision not to intervene (see 2212150035). Some observers believe Congress may look to expand CFIUS jurisdiction this year to ensure the committee can block similar land purchases in the future (see 2212290023).