– We want to know what kind of assessments the minister has made. It is no less relevant now, seen in light of today’s security situation, says Høyre’s Mahmoud Farahmand to news. Høyre’s Mahmoud Farahmand believes several questions are unanswered. Photo: Helge Mikalsen / VG He believes the agreement should never have been entered into. – This is material that could easily have been obtained through our allies, says the Conservative representative. Farahmand fears that sensitive information could fall into the hands of the Chinese authorities. And maybe be shared with the Russians. – We know that China and Russia have close ties. That is why it is extra important that we are careful now. Should Russia gain access to images and data from inside the police’s operational service, it would clearly be a vulnerability for Norwegian security, he says. MUST ANSWER: Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) is being demanded new answers from the Storting. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTBM MUST ANSWER: Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) is being demanded new answers from the Storting. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB Mehl: – Inherited purchase The Conservative Party is now sending a written question to the SP minister. There, the Minister of Justice is asked, among other things, whether she finds it prudent to proceed with the acquisition. The rules at the Storting state that she must respond within six working days. – The Conservative Party has previously asked questions about the acquisition, but we do not feel we have received good enough answers. Given the security policy situation, we consider it absolutely necessary to get updated information and a new assessment, says Farahmand. In an email to news, the Minister of Justice writes that she is not aware of the assessments that the previous government made, when the police first bought DJI drones in 2019. – It was the Conservative Party that was in government in 2019, 2020 and the first nine months of 2021, when the drones were put into use. I would like to remind the representative that I “inherited” this purchase from the Conservative Party’s Minister of Justice, says Mehl. Since 2019, Chinese drones have been in use as part of a trial project in several police districts – also in operational service. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB Photo: Asbjørn Odd Berge / news In 2019, a missing woman in Mandal was found alive thanks to a heat-seeking camera from a police drone. As a reason for his concern, Farahmand refers to this year’s risk report from the National Security Authority (NSM). It states, among other things, that “when using Chinese-produced technology, it should be assumed that information can be collected and passed on to Chinese authorities and Chinese intelligence”. – The Chinese Intelligence Act gives the authorities the right to obtain information from companies and individuals. DJI, which produces these drones, is one such Chinese company that could be forced to hand over information to Chinese authorities and intelligence, Farahmand claims. Should not have been bought It was in December last year that it became known that the police had made an agreement to purchase drones for up to NOK 100 million from the Chinese DJI. The agreement was criticized by human rights organisations, who pointed out that the US authorities have introduced sanctions against the drone company. The reason was that their drones are said to have been used in the surveillance of Chinese Uyghurs. After SV and Høyre first raised the case earlier this year, Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) announced a new review of the case. – I have not seen the review it is referred to yet, and I assume that POD has made thorough and good assessments of this purchase, says Mehl to news now. She called Police Director Benedicte Bjørnland to a meeting in the ministry. – There is reason for new dialogue now, because we have received new information from American security authorities, said Bjørnland. She announced new rounds of the case with NSM. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB – Trygge The dialogue with the National Security Authority has now been finalized – without the drone agreement being changed. news is informed by the Norwegian Police Directorate. – The procurement has ended because we have signed a contract, and we have bought the drones we need so far. There is no need to change the contract, says section chief Elisabeth Rise in the Norwegian Police Directorate to news. She says the drones are off the shelf. They are not considered a so-called security graded acquisition. – We have had a dialogue with NSM and the Ministry of Justice and Emergency Management about this. We are confident that the safety measures and assessments made in relation to the use of drones from DJI are sufficient, says Rise. She emphasizes that the police carry out a risk assessment every time they use the drones. The purpose is to prevent sensitive information from going astray. The drones are used, among other things, for search and rescue, traffic accidents and during preparations for demonstrations. – The drones are a useful tool for the police and have helped save several lives, says Minister of Justice Emilie Mehl. She says the police have set additional security requirements around the use of drones to reduce vulnerability. – Comes with a risk Police director Benedicte Bjørnland told news earlier this year that the drones from DJI are the best on the market for their use. At the same time, she added that “the intelligence threat is known to those who have participated in the project”. – The technology we have bought from the Chinese authorities comes with a risk. That is why we are very concerned about how we use the equipment, said Bjørnland. Mahmoud Farahmand in the Conservative Party still does not feel safe. – It is difficult to understand that this should be as unproblematic as it is described now. Basically, I have no reason to distrust the Norwegian Police Directorate and NSM’s assessments, but as a legislator, the Storting must make sure that sensitive information cannot go astray. – The assessments in this case appear facile and somewhat naive given the extremely tense security policy situation, continues the Conservative representative. Farahmand points out that the drones are used by the police in ongoing operations. – This could open the way for the police’s operational pattern and other sensitive information to become visible to the Chinese authorities and intelligence. In that case, it could constitute a major vulnerability for Norwegian counter-intelligence and crisis management, he says. A woman walks past a DJI store in Beijing. Photo: JADE GAO / AFP The company rejects DJI’s European communications director Barbara Stelzner answered news in an email earlier this year. There she wrote that the drones are built in a way that ensures that data cannot be extracted against the customers’ wishes. – DJI does not have access to flight logs, images or videos, unless the customer actively chooses to share data by connecting to our servers, uploading images and videos to our platform or physically delivering the drone for service at DJI, stated Stelzner. The DJI drones have been in use by the police since 2019. Last year, the trial agreement expired. A new agreement was then concluded with the drone supplier. Former justice minister Monica Mæland from the Conservative Party and police director Benedicte Bjørnland tried the Chinese drones themselves in 2020. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB And despite criticism from the Conservative Party, the Conservative Party’s own justice minister Monica Mæland was actually present when the police demonstrated the use of the drones in June 2020. It all even took place on the roof of the Police Directorate at Majorstuen in Oslo – with police director Benedicte Bjørnland present.
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Demands new answers about Chinese drones – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
