US Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr on Tuesday called for new steps to ensure Huawei Technologies Co (華為) and ZTE Corp (中興) equipment is barred from US telecommunications networks and ensure no electronic devices produced with forced labor enter the US.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last year adopted rules requiring US telecoms to remove and replace equipment produced by Huawei or ZTE if purchased using an US$8.3 billion government fund, but carriers could still purchase equipment from the Chinese firms with private funds.
Carr called for closing the “glaring loophole.”
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“It makes no sense to allow that exact same equipment to get purchased and inserted into our communication network as long as federal dollars are not involved,” he said.
Huawei said in a statement that “extending the FCC’s evaluation and approval process to prohibit equipment that is already accredited by the FCC is misguided and costly to American companies.”
It said that blocking equipment based on where it was assembled is “discriminatory, and will do nothing to protect the integrity of US communications networks or supply chains.”
Carr also said that the FCC could do more to address China’s abuses of ethnic and religious minorities, especially against Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang.
The commission’s equipment authorization rules should be updated to require companies that procure devices or components from Xinjiang “meet a heightened burden to ensure that their supply chain does not rely on any forced labor,” Carr said.
Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel “has long advocated for reforming the equipment authorization process to better ensure security in new network devices and is pleased to see growing support for this idea,” a commission spokesman said, adding that “the FCC is already working on addressing many of the issues Commissioner Carr spoke about.”
The FCC earlier last month designated five Chinese companies as threats to national security under a 2019 law aimed at protecting US communications networks: Huawei and ZTE, as well as Hytera Communications Corp (海能達通信), Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co (杭州海康威視數字技術) and Zhejiang Dahua Technology Co (浙江大華技術).
The FCC in December last year finalized rules requiring carriers with ZTE or Huawei equipment to “rip and replace” that equipment.
US lawmakers have approved US$1.9 billion to fund replacements.
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