Capital District Times

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik and Congressman Rob Wittman have called on the U.S. Air Force to end its reliance on suppliers from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) for components used in critical weapons platforms. In a letter addressed to U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall, they expressed their concerns over this dependency.

“I am proud to work with Congressman Wittman to demand the Air Force address and mitigate the presence of Communist Chinese manufacturers in their supply chains. It is completely unacceptable that the Department of the Air Force has increased their reliance on Communist China for components in our critical weapons and defense platforms,” said Congresswoman Elise Stefanik.

“Despite the Pentagon having identified China as the greatest strategic threat to the United States, the department continues to rely on China for components in critical weapons platforms that are being produced to deter conflict,” said Congressman Rob Wittman. “With our Army and Navy both able to decrease their reliance on Chinese suppliers over the past year, it is unacceptable for our Air Force to still rely on 130 Chinese suppliers across 15 critical technology areas. The service branch must do everything it can to reduce this dire threat to U.S. national security.”

The lawmakers referenced Govini’s 2024 National Security Scorecard, stating, “According to Govini’s 2024 National Security Scorecard, the Department of the Air Force (DAF) is still reliant on 130 PRC suppliers across fifteen critical technology areas essential for U.S. national security. While the scorecard shows that the Departments of the Army and Navy both decreased their reliance on PRC suppliers over the past year, DAF was reported to have increased its usage of PRC suppliers by 68.8 percent. It is unacceptable for any organization in DOD to be increasing their reliance on PRC supply chains for critical capabilities and platforms.”

They further noted, “DAF’s increased reliance on PRC suppliers over the last year does not match the concerns expressed. Increasing dependence on PRC suppliers is clearly the wrong direction especially when both the Army and Navy are moving to reduce their exposure.”

The letter also seeks information regarding which Department of Air Force supply chains have become most dependent on PRC suppliers and what caused this increase in dependency.