STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER BRENDAN CARR Re: China Telecom (Americas) Corporation, GN Docket No. 20-109, ITC-214-20010613-00346, ITC-214-20020716-00371, ITC-T/C-20070725-00285 Last year, when we blocked China Mobile USA from entering the U.S. market based on national security concerns, I said it was time for a top to bottom review of every telecom carrier with ties to the communist regime in China. Many of these firms were authorized to operate in the U.S. decades ago and the security threats have evolved substantially in the intervening years. With that type of review in mind, the FCC opened investigations into several carriers, including China Telecom Americas, and we have sought answers from them to assess any threats they pose to America’s national security. To assist the FCC in our review, the Executive Branch agencies with responsibility for national security reviews have offered their recommendations. They advise that there are now substantial and unacceptable national security and law enforcement risks associated with China Telecom Americas’ continued access to U.S. telecommunications infrastructure. They state that China Telecom Americas’ operations provide opportunities for Chinese state-sponsored actors to engage in espionage and to steal trade secrets and other confidential business information. And our own review reveals that China Telecom Americas’ operations appear to provide opportunities for Chinese state-sponsored actors to disrupt and misroute U.S. communications traffic. When you combine this and other evidence with the particular place in the U.S. communications network where China Telecom Americas operates, the concerns we have raised are only heightened. I therefore agree with the Commission’s determination today. I want to thank the staff of the International Bureau, Wireline Competition Bureau, and Enforcement Bureau for their hard work on this important item. It has my support.