By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Sept 8 (Reuters) - The Trump administration on Tuesday blasted Ford Motor's business partnerships with Chinese companies, saying they pose national security concerns.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a letter to Ford CEO Jim Farley sent on Tuesday said the automaker's dealings with Chinese battery maker CATL and Chinese automakers Geely and BYD raised "profound concern."
He urged Ford to cut ties with major Chinese companies.
Duffy said USDOT was "deeply alarmed"
by Ford's reliance on licensed technology from Chinese battery manufacturer CATL at its plant in Marshall, Michigan, and noted that CATL is on the Pentagon's list of companies accused of ties to China's military.
He also criticized the company's decision not to move production of the Lincoln Nautilus from China to the United States until 2030, as it leaves the company reliant on Chinese manufacturing for several more years.
Ford, in a statement, said Duffy's "letter is a wrongheaded attempt to capture headlines." The company added that "while others continue to import Chinese batteries, Ford is investing to build batteries here in America" and added that "Ford owns the plant, controls the operation and employs the workforce."
President Donald Trump is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month. Duffy's comments come as Congress is pushing to tighten a ban on Chinese vehicles in the United States.
Major automakers last week urged Congress to pass the ban before the end of the year -- and expressly urged lawmakers to bar BYD and other Chinese automakers from receiving waivers to sell vehicles in the United States.
Duffy also questioned Farley's pitch in January to administration officials at the Detroit auto show "to facilitate Chinese joint ventures on United States soil."
The Chinese Embassy in Washington, CATL, BYD and Geely did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
"When a company intentionally chooses to deepen operational dependencies on strategic competitors, it fails to act as the reliable partner the American public and this DOT require," Duffy said of Ford.
Ford's deal with Geely faced criticism in July, with the chair of the U.S. House select committee on China, Representative John Moolenaar of Michigan, saying the "partnership with Geely will further enable China’s decimation of auto markets in Europe."
It has also faced criticism for its partnership with CATL.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by David Gaffen)
