US revokes licence of top Chinese telecoms company
Washington has revoked the US licence of one of China's
biggest telecoms companies citing "national security" concerns.
China Telecom must stop providing services in America within
60 days.
Officials said the Chinese government's control of the
company gave it the opportunity "to access, store, disrupt, and/or
misroute US communications".
This in turn could allow it "to engage in espionage and
other harmful activities against the US", they said.
China Telecom, which has provided telecoms services in the
US for nearly 20 years, called the decision "disappointing".
"We plan to pursue all available options while
continuing to serve our customers," a statement said.
China Telecom is one of three companies that dominate
China's telecoms market. The firm has hundreds of millions of customers in 110
countries, with services ranging from broadband internet to mobile and landline
telephone networks.
The decision comes hours after US Treasury Secretary Janet
Yellen spoke to China's Vice Premier Liu He about the state of the global
economy.
The meeting had been seen as a sign of improving relations
between the two superpowers, which have recently exchanged barbs over trade and
Taiwan.
The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) warned it might
shut down China Telecom Americas in April 2020, claiming the firm "is
subject to exploitation, influence, and control by the Chinese
government".
It said the company was "highly likely to be forced to
comply with Chinese government requests without... independent judicial
oversight".
It is the latest Chinese telecoms firm to be targeted by US
officials over national security concerns.
Last year, the FCC designated Huawei and ZTE as threats to
communications networks - making it harder for US firms to buy equipment from
them.
The FCC revoked China Mobile's US licence in 2019, and is in
process of doing so for two other state-backed firms - China Unicom Americas
and Pacific Networks.
In all cases, US officials cited risks that the Chinese
government could use the companies to spy on America or harm national
interests.
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