FCC investigates whether Huawei & others violated US ban

For years, the United States has been imposing severe trade restrictions on Chinese telecommunications companies that supply equipment in the country. Donald Trump began by including Huawei on the US Entity List, and the Biden administration continued along the same lines. That said, the FCC, under a new administration, believes that sanctioned Chinese companies have been circumventing the US ban.

Every law has its loophole, or so they say. Often, the wording of laws must be extremely specific to address every potential situation that the sanctioned party could take advantage of. Well, the US Federal Communications Commission believes that Chinese firms like Huawei, ZTE, and China Telecom have been using every potential loophole in the legislation to continue operating in the country, one way or another.

The FCC says it has reason to believe Chinese companies are circumventing the US ban

The FCC has launched a “sweeping investigation“ into companies already on its “Covered List.” The US government considers the aforementioned companies—among others—to be aligned with the Chinese Communist Party. Therefore, using their equipment in US telecommunications structures is a potential risk to national security. A 2022 Biden executive order sought to ensure that “untrustworthy communications equipment is not authorized for use within [US] borders.” This included everything from telecommunications equipment to video surveillance products.

The FCC, now under Brendan Carr, says it has reason to believe that companies on the Covered List still operate in the United States. To do so, they may have taken advantage of the fact that the law does not cover “particular types of operations or otherwise.” Thus, these Chinese companies are allegedly “camouflaging” themselves under types of operations not covered by the law. Carr said, “These companies are trying to make an end run around those FCC prohibitions by continuing to do business in America on a private or ‘unregulated’ basis.”

Carr’s goal is to “close any loopholes that have permitted untrustworthy, foreign adversary state-backed actors to skirt its rules.” The new FCC chairman came to office with three main goals. First, the agency will seek to reduce US dependence on foreign technology in certain areas. Second, it will seek to mitigate potential vulnerabilities that allow cyberattacks and espionage. Lastly, it will attempt to ensure that the US emerges victorious in the fight against China for dominance in key technologies.

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