WASHINGTON - China Mobile Ltd's bid to provide phone service in the US was rejected by regulators, who cited national security concerns about the company controlled by Beijing, adding more friction to fraught trade relations between the world's biggest economies.
President Donald Trump is locked in a trade dispute with China and has threatened to raise tariffs on US$200 billion of Chinese goods as early as Friday. It wanted approval to be listed as a"common carrier" that would let it to carry international voice traffic between the US and foreign countries, and to connect that traffic with the US telecommunications network.Granting the request would have given China Mobile greater access to telephone lines, fibre-optic cables and cellular networks, raising concerns about its ability to alter, block and re-route traffic, the White House told the FCC.
US concern focused on Chinese law that requires companies to cooperate with state intelligence agencies, which the US has said could be used for economic espionage or intelligence activities. "We comply with all applicable laws in the course of operations and have not engaged in any behaviour that causes 'substantial and serious national security and law enforcement risks'," China Mobile said in an e-mailed statement prior to the vote.
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