UPDATE China opposes FCC action against two Chinese-owned telecoms this week. The FCC revoked permission for Pacific Networks and its subsidiary ComNet USA to operate here based on national security concerns and the companies’ own conduct.
The Commission said in its Order the companies’ ownership and control by the Chinese government raise “significant national security and law enforcement risks by providing opportunities for the companies, their parent entities and affiliates, and the Chinese government to access, monitor, store, and in some cases disrupt and/or misroute U.S. communications.” That, in turn, would allow them to engage in espionage and other harmful activities against the United States, noted the agency.
The FCC also said the telecom’s conduct and representations to the Commission and Congress “demonstrate a lack of trustworthiness and reliability that erodes the baseline level of trust” that the agency and other U.S. government agencies require of telecom carriers.
China opposes the U.S. crackdown on its telecoms operating here, the commerce ministry said on Thursday. Ministry spokesman Gao Feng told a news conference that China would take the measures necessary to safeguard the legitimate rights of its firms, Reuters reported.
Despite protests from targeted Chinese companies, U.S. courts have so far upheld the FCC’s actions, notes Politico. Earlier this month the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals shot down China Unicom’s attempt to block a similar order by the FCC to halt its U.S. operations.
The telecoms have 60 days to shut down their operations in the U.S. The FCC said it would raise consumer awareness by issuing a consumer guide in English, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese on the Commission’s website, advising ComNet’s customers of the Commission’s decision and publicizing other options for calling card services.
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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