Trump declared emergency due to threats to the US power grid

Donald Trump, US President, decided to declare a state of emergency due to “threats to the energy system” and restricted the use of a number of foreign technical means in it. The corresponding decree was published on the White House website.

“I believe that the situation regarding the supply of electrical equipment for power systems abroad constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States, which originates entirely or to a significant extent from outside the United States, and I hereby declare a state of emergency in the country in connection with this threat. This threat exists both in the case of individual transactions and in the case of transactions as a whole. To counter this threat, additional measures are needed to protect the safety, integrity, and reliability of electrical equipment for power systems used in the United States,” the text of the decree states.

In accordance with Trump’s decision, the purchase and installation of a number of types of foreign‑made electrical equipment and critical software, as well as digital components that could exploit vulnerabilities in the American power grid for cyberattacks, are prohibited. Such equipment includes high‑voltage transformers, inverters for solar and battery systems, generators, relay protection devices, and “smart electronic devices”. The Secretary of Energy, in coordination with other agencies, is authorized to determine the conditions for operating already installed imported equipment to eliminate risks, as well as the deadlines and procedure for terminating current and future transactions that fall under the scope of the decree.