CHINA/FCC: “The top U.S. communications regulator on Monday [1-29-18] said he opposed an idea by some security officials to counter the threat of China spying on U.S. phone calls by having the government build and run a national, super-fast 5G wireless network… Three of the other four FCC commissioners also said Monday they oppose nationalizing the 5G network.
A U.S. built 5G network could in theory be more resilient to Chinese government intrusions. A leaked National Security Council memo published by Axios news website on Sunday said China is the dominant manufacturer of network infrastructure and notes the importance of building the network with ‘equipment from a trusted supply chain.’…
On Sunday, Reuters reported that President Donald Trump’s national security team was looking at options to counter the threat of China spying on U.S. phone calls that include the government building a 5G network, citing a senior administration official.
The official, confirming the gist of the Axios report, said the option was being debated at a low level in the administration and was six to eight months away from being considered by the president himself. The 5G network concept is aimed at addressing what officials see as China’s threat to U.S. cyber security and economic security.
FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat, said the memo ‘correctly diagnoses a real problem. There is a worldwide race to lead in 5G and other nations are poised to win. But the remedy proposed here really misses the mark.’
The Trump administration has taken a harder line with China on policies initiated by predecessor President Barack Obama, a Democrat, on issues ranging from Beijing’s role in restraining North Korea to Chinese efforts to acquire U.S. strategic industries.”
-David Shepardson, “Regulator opposes idea of U.S. government anti-spying 5G network,” Reuters, Jan. 29, 2018 06:34am