FCC Chairman Ajit Pai noted several U.S. government agencies
had recommended the revocation citing national security concerns.
Pai said there are “significant concerns” that China Telecom
will be forced to comply with Chinese government’s requests for information,
including communications intercepts. China Telecom, the largest Chinese
telecommunications company, has had authorization to provide telecommunications
services for nearly 20 years.
China Telecom Americas did not have an immediate comment.
The FCC in April had warned it might shut down the U.S.
operations of three state-controlled Chinese telecommunications companies,
citing national security risks, including China Telecom Americas as well as
China Unicom Americas , Pacific Networks Corp and its wholly owned subsidiary
ComNet (USA) LLC.
The U.S. Justice Department and other federal agencies in
April called on the FCC to revoke China Telecom’s ability to operate in the
United States.
In May 2019, the FCC voted unanimously to deny another
state-owned Chinese telecommunications company, China Mobile Ltd , the right to
provide services in the United States, citing risks that the Chinese government
could use the approval to conduct espionage against the U.S. government.
The FCC also on Thursday rejected a petition from Huawei
Technologies Co Ltd asking the agency to reconsider its decision designating
the Chinese company as a U.S. national security threat to communications
networks.
The FCC said in June it had formally designated China’s
Huawei and ZTE Corp as threats, a declaration that bars U.S. firms from tapping
an $8.3 billion government fund to purchase equipment from the companies. The
FCC affirmed its ZTE designation last month.
The FCC on Thursday also finalized rules that require
carriers with ZTE or Huawei equipment to “rip and replace” that equipment and
created a reimbursement program to subsidize smaller carriers to remove and
replace those services and equipment.
Pai noted the commission “can’t actually implement the
reimbursement program unless and until Congress appropriates the necessary
funding.”
Huawei said in a statement it “is disappointed with the
FCC’s decision to force removal of our products from telecommunications
networks. This overreach puts U.S. citizens at risk in the largely underserved
rural areas – during a pandemic – when reliable communication is essential.”