The US Federal Communications Commission, FCC, Huawei It plans to completely ban all new telecom equipment associated with ZTE.
Chinese telecom giants Huawei Technologies and ZTE are planning to block sales of new products citing national security concerns. Just last week, FCC Chair Jessica Rosenwall sent three other commissioners for final approval of the proposed ban.
Companies blocked by the FCC will not be able to sell new components in the United States without a license to sell network equipment. The FCC first proposed this ban in 2019. At the time, the agency’s chairman, Egypt, said the ban was meant to protect the United States from potential security threats from Chinese companies such as Huawei and ZTE.
This time around, the FCC has officially banned Huawei and ZTE for national security, Axios reported, citing a strong source. The banning of Huawei and ZTE products has been a matter that the FCC agency has been considering since the days of former President Donald Trump. The sanctions were considered after security experts said that China could use electronic devices to spy on people in the United States.
In 2021, US President Joe Biden signed into law a law regarding the licensing of telecom equipment in the country. The law plans to exclude companies deemed to be a threat to the United States. FCC Chairman Jessica Rosenwall said that the draft order on the ban on the sale of network equipment was released on October 5 and will need further approvals to become official.
This proposal only limits the sale of new network equipment, and Huawei and ZTE devices that have already been sold and distributed in the market will be allowed to continue to be distributed until an order is issued to stop sales. PCMag reports that the FCC is also planning to ban the sale of video surveillance equipment. In addition to Huawei and ZTE, the FCC also announced Dahua Technology Company. The proposed ban also targets three Chinese companies, Hytera Communications Corporation and Hikvision.