Arkansas is the first state in the ​United States to take a strong stance against ‘hostile foreign entities,’ particularly China, by banning them from owning agricultural land in the state.

During a press conference on Tuesday, Gov. Sarah Sanders (R-AR) announced that the state has ordered the Chinese state-owned Agri Chemical Company, Syngenta, to divest itself of its land holdings in Arkansas due to national security concerns.

“Today, we are becoming the first state in the country to take an action like the one that we are announcing right now,” said Sanders. “At the beginning of my term, my administration worked with our partners in the legislature to get hostile foreign entities out of Arkansas.”

Highlighting her commitment to Arkansas’s security, she referenced Act 636, which she had proudly signed. Sponsored by Senator Johnson and Representative Vaught, this act prohibited foreign entities from nine countries deemed adversarial from owning agricultural land in Arkansas.