FCC is poised to introduce a ban on companies that use certain Chinese technology and equipment from building submarine communication cables that connect to America.
The US telecoms regulator will vote on a new rule aimed at tackling potential Chinese espionage by ensuring new cables that land in the US are less vulnerable to threats from Beijing and other adversaries.
The commission is expected to approve the rule on Aug 7.
The measure will affect Chinese companies that are already included on a list of groups that the FCC views as posing a national security threat to the US. It will have an impact on Huawei, which supplies some of the equipment for submarine cables. Huawei previously sold a subsidiary that was the largest Chinese submarine cable manufacturer, but the US government remains concerned about the group, called HMN Tech.
The FCC will also vote on a proposed rule — that would be approved at a later date — that would impact all Chinese equipment and technology.
Once the measure has been adopted, groups using restricted Chinese technology will be unable to secure FCC licenses to build or operate cables that connect to the US. They will also be banned from leasing capacity on cables laid by other companies. China Telecom, China Unicom and China Mobile all own or operate cables that connect to the US. But the rule will only apply to licenses for future cables.
Next month the FCC will propose another measure to simplify the license process for US cable companies — including Google, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon — once they have provided certain security-related guarantees.
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