A senior lawmaker informed DailyMail.com that China and other adversaries are employing innovative tactics to infiltrate sensitive U.S. military sites.
According to the lawmaker, Chinese nationals attempted to gain access to U.S. military bases and related installations around 100 times last year.
They often disguise themselves as tourists or DoorDash drivers who inadvertently stray from their intended route and end up on or near sensitive and classified federal sites, making it easier for them to gain entry.
Additionally, it’s not just Chinese nationals involved in these infiltrations. Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wis., exclusively told DailyMail.com in an interview that Iran, Russia, and terrorist groups from the Middle East are also participating.
‘There have been reports of Russians, there have been reports of Iranians, there have been reports of people from throughout the Middle East – people who are members of terrorist organizations – also being caught near military bases,’ Grothman said.
Although the Republicans did not specify the terrorist groups involved, Grothman did confirm that the efforts by Iran, Russia, and these groups will be discussed during a classified House Oversight Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs hearing on Thursday.
‘There have been reports that off of our military bases … that we have had foreign nationals here taking pictures and recording what’s going on.’
He also suggested that foreign nationals may be obtaining jobs through DoorDash or similar services to gain access and gather information from U.S. military bases.
Reports also indicate that foreign nationals have used drones to enhance their surveillance efforts. Grothman warned that these attempts have increased significantly in recent years.
‘It’s not something that we believe was going on to a very significant degree just a few years ago,’ he said. ‘So, this new stuff.’
The Wisconsin Republican said the rise in espionage attempts comes as record numbers of non-Hispanic foreign nationals are pouring across the U.S.-Mexico border into the American heartland.
‘When you’re talking about the number of Chinese coming across the southern border, not that they’re all here doing intelligence research, but when it goes up by a factor of 80 in one year, you’ve got to wonder what’s going on here.’
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has apprehended nearly 25,000 Chinese nationals since October. The House is holding a classified hearing on Thursday to discuss China’s efforts to infiltrate U.S. military bases and observe troops at work.
Grothman and his fellow Republicans have consistently criticized the current border situation as a national security threat due to the large number of individuals crossing between legal ports of entry.
He highlighted the unusually high number of Chinese nationals entering the U.S. through the southern border in recent months as a cause for concern, suggesting they may be involved in surveillance activities.
In March, a Chinese national illegally breached the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twenty-nine Palms, a remote military training base in the California desert, and refused to leave before being detained by authorities, according to Border Patrol officials.
‘So, it’s of particular concern because it’s so easy now to get in here,’ Grothman said. ‘I mean, in essence, the United States has an open border. There’s no time more tempting for foreign countries to come in here and say, ‘let’s poke around and get information on American military bases.”
Operatives from the Communist nation have been caught scuba diving close to Cape Canaveral, wandering onto a missile launch site in New Mexico, and claiming to be staying on an Army base in Alaska.
The Republican also told DailyMail.com that some foreign nationals are instructed by their governments to spy on the U.S. bases.
‘When these Chinese come here they are told by the Chinese government that they are supposed to take pictures of anything that’s suspicious or they feel might be helpful.’
And there are obvious reasons why individuals from China, Iran, Russia, and terror groups would want to know more about U.S. military capability.
‘They also would, I’m sure, love to find a way to do a great deal of damage to the United States. Why would a country be sending people here who are taking pictures of military bases or what have you unless it was for in preparation for or contingency for some either terrorist act, or even concerned about war,’ the Wisconsin lawmaker said.
‘When you see other countries collecting data, as far as what’s going on in America, you have to worry a little bit. If you were coming to the United States, either for a job or for tourist reasons, I don’t think you’d be hanging around outside military bases,’ Grothman added.
