Are Chinese cranes being used for surveillance at US ports? House GOP visits Port of Miami to find out

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EXCLUSIVE: Members of the House China Select Committee will inspect Chinese-made cranes on Friday during a site visit to the Port of Miami, amid fears that Beijing-made infrastructure could be conducting surveillance on U.S. ports and pose a risk to national security.

Lawmakers and U.S. officials have been sounding the alarm on growing security concerns surrounding Chinese manufactured cranes operating at U.S. ports.

The AS Savanna cargo ship pulls into port in Miami, Florida, where the House China committee will visit on Friday to inspect Chinese cranes. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

House China Committee lawmakers, including Chairman Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., will tour the Port of Miami to learn about the security of critical infrastructure.

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A source familiar with the site visit told Fox News Digital that the lawmakers will focus on how the Chinese Communist Party could use Chinese-made infrastructure to spy on Americans, or halt the flow of goods — in some cases, military assets.

Chairman Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., listens during a hearing of a special House committee dedicated to countering China, on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023, in Washington.  (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The visit comes after the Wall Street Journal reported this month that the Pentagon is now viewing giant cargo cranes as possible Chinese spying tools. The report suggested Chinese equipment at ports could be used for surveillance.

After visiting the port, the lawmakers are expected to travel to U.S. Southern Command headquarters to get information on any CCP influence in Latin America and how that influence could threaten American interests.

"The Communist regime in Beijing is America’s most significant national security threat. The Communist Party of China is not a competitor, but rather an adversary that actively undermines the United States and our geostrategic interests," Gimenez told Fox News Digital. "For years, I have been warning about the need to decouple from Communist China and diversify our manufacturing capabilities to meet our critical infrastructure needs."

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A cargo ship sits at PortMiami, which will  (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Gimenez said he wants to work with Gallagher to develop "the best strategies to protect America from the CCP’s malign influence."

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Gimenez has been warning about security at the ports for years, and introducing legislation to address the issue in last Congress, including bills that required the inspection of certain foreign cranes before use at a U.S. port, and one that called for a study of cybersecurity and national security threats posed by foreign-manufactured cranes at U.S. ports.

MIAMI, FLORIDA - APRIL 08: Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (R-FL) speaks during a press conference  about the cruise industry at PortMiami on April 08, 2021 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

In its annual threat assessment earlier this month, the U.S. intelligence community warned that China represents the "broadest, most active, and persistent cyber espionage threat to U.S. Government and private-sector networks."

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"China’s cyber pursuits and its industry’s export of related technologies increase the threats of aggressive cyber operations against the U.S. homeland," officials warned, adding that China is "capable of launching cyberattacks that could disrupt critical infrastructure services within the United States, including against oil and gas pipelines, and rail systems."

Officials also warned that China is rapidly expanding and improving its surveillance, its artificial intelligence and big data analytics capabilities, which could expand beyond domestic use.