The ruling Chinese communist regime announced that it will ban the export of all unregulated civilian drones that can be used for military purposes or terrorist activities, while lifting some previous temporary restrictions on its drones. The adjustments will take effect on Sept. 1.
The new control list includes high-precision measurement equipment and some unmanned aircraft components, according to a joint statement issued by the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Customs, and the Equipment Development Department of the Central Military Commission on July 31. The decision is said to be aimed at preventing the use of drones in “the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.”
Notably, China’s Ministry of Commerce also lifted its temporary restrictions on some civilian drones, although it didn’t specify which type.
The move comes as Beijing is facing increasing scrutiny and criticism from the West, led by the United States, over supplying Russia with civil-military dual use equipment that has been used in its war effort in Ukraine. It followed a visit by Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba to Beijing in late July.
China is a major manufacturer in the global drone industry.
The CCP Loophole
Since last year, U.S. intelligence agencies and media have reported that Chinese drones were used in the Russia–Ukraine war, which Beijing has repeatedly denied.
Leading China-based drone manufacturer DJI Technology Co., Ltd., was blacklisted by the U.S. government for its connections with the CCP’s military in December 2020. DJI said it repeatedly expressed opposition to the use of its products for military purposes but admitted that it has been unable to restrict or track anyone from purchasing its products for such purposes.
After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, DJI announced in April 2022 that it would suspend all business activities in Russia and Ukraine.
Under increasing international pressure, the CCP announced in July 2023 export controls on some drones and drone-related equipment, including a two-year temporary export ban on some consumer-grade drones, prohibiting the export of any civilian drones for military purposes.
But the new decision to lift some of these restrictions means that the CCP’s drone exports remain a big loophole, according to associate research fellow at Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, Shu Hsiao-Huang.
Shu said that while the West has already imposed many high-tech controls on Russia and Iran, “I think China (the CCP) may still have many channels to bypass it.”
Judging by drone use in the Russia–Ukraine war, he said, “general consumer drones, as long as they can transmit image data, can almost all be used in combat.”
Su Tzu-yun, researcher and director of the Division of Defense Strategy and Resources at Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that while there remain concerns, consumer drones “are usually small and are generally used for taking photos, and their control distance and load capacity are relatively limited.”
Meanwhile, Shu said the CCP may also be worried that the United States will further sanction China’s drone exports and reduce its drone export market in the West.
“At least on the surface, [the CCP] must cooperate with the West on these controls because of the pressure,” Shu said.
In addition to drone exports, “the West is also worried that China’s drone technology will be provided to Russia or Iran, because Iran is Russia’s main drone provider, and Iranian-made drones launched an attack on Israel in April,” Shu added.
“Even if they [the CCP] are not supplying drones, these Chinese-made parts may still be installed in Iranian-made or Russian-made drones.”
Ning Haizhong and Luo Ya contributed to this report.