Attorney General William P. Barr will chair a new committee created by President Trump to review national security concerns raised by foreign companies’ participation in the U.S. telecommunications industry, the Justice Department said Tuesday.
Mr. Trump established the committee Saturday with an executive order. The committee’s primary goal is to recommend guidelines for the Federal Communications Commission as it reviews companies’ applications for U.S. telecommunications licenses.
The committee will focus on how the FCC can evaluate applications for potential national security or law enforcement concerns. That relationship will go both ways because the FCC can refer applications or licenses to the committee to review for potential national security risks.
“In the digital age, our telecommunications networks are more important than ever, and not just to the economy,” Mr. Barr said. “This is a national security and public safety issue. That’s why the federal government must be vigilant and ensure that a foreign adversary cannot undermine the networks our country depends on.”
Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Acting Homeland Security Director Chad Wolf and heads of other departments will also serve on the committee.
The Justice Department’s National Security Division, through its Foreign Investment Review Section, will represent Mr. Barr on the committee.
Some of America’s largest telecom companies are owned by foreign companies. The largest shareholder of T-Mobile, the company created through the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint, is a German company.
Of most concern, however, is an application by China Mobile USA, a Chinese government-controlled company that has sought to provide international phone services in the United States.
China Mobile, through a Delaware corporation, had applied to operate phone lines in the United States, but that request was blocked by the FCC citing national security concerns.
Mr. Barr earlier this year spoke out against the threat posed by China’s dominance of emerging 5G technology. He warned that if Chinese technology is used, no part of the United States’ 5G system would be safe from Chinese espionage.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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