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On Thursday, Brendan Carr, Republican Commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission, called on US national security agencies to investigate two Chinese telecommunications providers.
Carr called for the investigation at a public meeting of the FCC on Thursday before voting on a move that would prevent a separate Chinese company, China Mobile, from operating in the United States. Carr used a portion of her time in the podium to target China Unicom and China Telecom, two other Chinese telecom companies currently operating in US networks, claiming that security threats have changed since the companies were granted the rights. interconnection almost 20 years ago.
"The evidence I've seen in this case is questioning existing authorities," Carr said in a statement. "For example, today's decision quotes information that China Telecom has diverted US traffic and redirected it to China."
Carr would like national security agencies to determine whether the FCC should revoke the Chinese companies' licenses to operate in the country. In the event of revocation, this would force these companies to withdraw from the US market. He also asked the FCC to initiate proceedings in this case.
"It's time for the United States to take further action," said Carr. "Security threats have evolved over the many years that have elapsed since these companies obtained the interconnection rights of US networks in the early 2000s. Most, if not all, reasons for Today's decision seems to apply with a force equal to or greater than those inherited from the past. Let us make sure that our decisions of past decades do not inadvertently endanger American interests. "
Over the past year, regulatory agencies, federal law enforcement and lawmakers have been increasingly concerned that the integration of Chinese telecommunication equipment into the US networks could pose a threat to national security by allowing the Chinese government to scrutinize networks.
Democratic Commissioner Geoffrey Starks also expressed concern over the authorizations granted to these other Chinese telecommunications companies, but he did not go so far as to request an investigation. "The previous Commissioners have obtained [authority] to operators with a property structure similar to that of China Mobile, "said Starks." The executive points out how much national security has changed since obtaining its status. "
No other commissioner than Carr has asked for a similar investigation.
The measure voted today to block China Mobile's US networks was approved by 5 votes to 0. Last month, when the measure was announced, FCC President Ajit Pai said: "It is Clear that China Mobile's request to provide telecommunications services in our country poses significant and serious risks to national security and law enforcement. "
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