US legislation aimed at Huawei, ZTE telecoms infrastructure in Europe gains momentum

Name: ‘Our China policy has not changed,’ says White House after release of Huawei CFO Meng
Uploaded: 2021-09-30T19:02:46.000Z
Duration: 2 min 16 s
Description: ‘Our China policy has not changed,’ says White House after release of Huawei CFO Meng

More representatives in the House signed on as cosponsors and a Senate version was introduced

The legislation ‘would provide financing to European allies who are most vulnerable to low-cost options like Huawei’, according to two US senators

Reading Time:3 minutes

Why you can trust SCMP

Huawei and ZTE are the only two companies specifically mentioned in the Transatlantic Telecommunications Security Act. Photo illustration: Reuters

Robert Delaney

Published: 3:02am, 1 Oct 2021Updated: 5:43am, 1 Oct 2021

Bipartisan US legislation aimed at eliminating Chinese telecoms infrastructure in central and eastern Europe is gaining momentum as more representatives signed on as cosponsors and a Senate version was introduced.

Democratic representatives Ted Lieu of California and Brad Schneider of Illinois joined 30 other cosponsors of the Transatlantic Telecommunications Security Act this week, which would authorise the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to identify projects from Austria and Greece to Ukraine and Moldova to support in conjunction with counterpart agencies in Europe.

“The United States has national security and economic interests in assisting central and eastern European countries to improve the security of their telecommunications networks by reducing dependence on covered telecommunications equipment or services that are often offered with predatory economic inducements, and replacing them with secure telecommunications equipment or services,” the House bill says.

Huawei Technologies Co. and ZTE, both of which have been sanctioned by the US government in recent years, are the only two companies specifically mentioned in the bill, which moved to the House Foreign Affairs Committee for a vote this week. The legislation was introduced by Ohio Democrat Marcy Kaptur with Illinois Republican Adam Kinzinger as one of the first cosponsors.

02:16

‘Our China policy has not changed,’ says White House after release of Huawei CFO Meng

On Tuesday, senators Rob Portman, a Republican from Ohio, and Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, introduced similar legislation in their chamber, in which they warn about China’s attempts “to undermine” the sovereignty of central and eastern European nations through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The House version includes the same language.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x