Huawei condemns US security threat designation

Global Business

Huawei condemns US security threat designation(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 6, 2019 the logo of Chinese telecom giant Huawei is pictured during the Web Summit in Lisbon. – (Photo by PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA / AFP)

Chinese telecoms firm Huawei says services in rural America are in danger of losing internet access.

That’s after both Huawei and rival ZTE were both branded a security risk by the U.S. communications watchdog.

CGTN’s Owen Fairclough has more.

It’s a double whammy for ZTE and Huawei, arguably the two most controversial communications firms in the world right now.

The Chinese companies at the forefront of next-generation high-speed broadband internet, have been designated a national security risk by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) amid fears their equipment could be used for espionage and cyber attacks.

“It’s not hard to see the threat that these companies like Huawei and ZTE pose to our networks,” said Commissioner Brendan Carr, of the FCC.

“And because the networks in the U.S., from rural America to big cities are interconnected, even the smallest amount of compromised equipment could be devastating to U.S. security.”

The FCC is also banning U.S. communications firms who use Huawei and ZTE’s equipment from tapping into an $8.5 billion subsidies fund.

And it’s also proposing they replace that equipment.

In a statement, Huawei said this designation is based on innuendo and mistaken assumptions.

Schools, hospitals and libraries in rural America are in danger of losing their internet connections.

They’re served by around a dozen communications firms who’ve taken advantage of Huawei’s and ZTE’s competitive prices.

Huawei and ZTE, who have 30 days to contest the FCC’s decision, have been caught in a trade battle waged by the Trump administration against China.

Although the two sides have a verbally agreed preliminary deal to resolve their dispute, it’s yet to be signed.