North Dakota leaders say they are ready to help find an option to a proposed corn plant in Grand Forks after the U.S. Air Force penned a letter stating the Chinese manufacturer would pose a “significant threat to national security.”

The letter was sent to Sens. John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force.

“City leaders have asked for clarity from leaders in the federal government regarding the Fufeng project. The Air Force left ambiguity off the table when they said: ‘The proposed project presents a significant threat to national security with both near- and long-term risks of significant impacts to our operations in the area.’ As we have recommended, we believe the city should discontinue the Fufeng project and instead we should work together to find an American company to develop the agriculture project,” said the senators.

Fufeng Group recently purchased 370 acres of land to construct a wet corn milling plant 12 miles from the Grand Forks Air Force Base.

Gov. Doug Burgum also issued a statement in response to the Air Force letter.

“As we said previously, our top priority is the security of our citizens and our nation. We joined with city leaders in asking the federal government for clarity on any national security implications related to the Fufeng project, and now we finally have that clarity,” he said. “Given these concerns, we support the decision by the City of Grand Forks to initiate steps to stop the project with Fufeng Group and will support the city in finding another partner for a corn milling operation. We appreciate Mayor Bochenski and city officials for their leadership and proactive due diligence throughout this lengthy and complex process. The State of North Dakota stands ready to assist the city in exploring additional opportunities for value-added agriculture. As our farmers who compete in global markets know, agriculture is a global business, and North Dakota welcomes investment from domestic companies and our friends and allies.”

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States had concluded it did not have jurisdiction to rule on whether the Fufeng project posed a national concern.