Judge Keeps DJI on Pentagon Military-Linked List

U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman ruled that DJI must remain on the Pentagon's list of firms linked to the Chinese military, concluding the Defense Department presented 'substantial evidence' that the drone maker contributes to China's defense industrial base. He rejected many other government claims and said he could not conclude DJI is indirectly owned by the Chinese Communist Party, but deferred to the DoD's broad discretion and cited state designations and ties to state-supported entities as sufficient to uphold the listing. Remaining on the list bars DJI from certain U.S. contracts, grants and programs and heightens scrutiny from American businesses; the ruling comes amid prior Commerce and Treasury restrictions, customs holds on DJI products and the prospect of an import ban or mandated national-security risk assessments. DJI says it is not owned or controlled by the Chinese military, that the designation has caused financial and reputational harm, and that it is evaluating legal options while urging U.S. agencies to begin product evaluations. The decision signals continued U.S. national-security scrutiny of Chinese tech firms and affirms the government's wide latitude to designate companies as linked to Beijing's military-industrial apparatus even when some evidence is contested.