by David Shepardson

Washington (Reuters) -The Trump Administration plans to establish rules to restrict or potentially prohibit imports of Chinese drones and vehicles, after measures of the same order concerning cars and trucks, invoking national security issues.

The Commerce Department said on Friday that it planned to publish rules this month to respond to security risks involving information and communication technologies which are an integral part of drones and their supply chain, as well as for vehicles weighing more than 4.5 tonnes from countries like China and other foreign countries.

No details on the rules envisaged has been communicated.

The China Embassy in Washington did not immediately comment.

Chinese imports represent the vast majority of sales of commercial drones in the United States. More than half of them come from the DJI company, the largest drone manufacturer in the world.

The administration of former Democratic President Joe Biden finalized rules that will actually prohibit access to the US market for almost all Chinese cars and trucks from the end of 2026, as part of a hardening of checks on board software and components from China.

In January, the Commerce Department indicated that it could also impose restrictions on drone systems such as edge computers, communication and flight control systems, ground control stations, operating software and data storage.

The Commerce Department opened national security surveys on imports of drones and related components in July and on average and heavy vehicles and their spare parts in April, which could lead to higher customs duties.

In June, US President Donald Trump signed decrees aimed at strengthening defenses against threatening drones and stimulating drone manufacturing in the United States.

In December, Joe Biden signed a law that could prohibit Dji and altar from selling new drone models in the United States.

(David Shepardson report, Benjamin Mallet)

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