Lawmakers and the intelligence community are have raised national security concerns about at least two telecommunications companies that operate service areas within 100 miles of U.S. military posts, The Washington Free Beacon reported.
Pine Telephone Company operates in southeastern Oklahoma in a service area that includes the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant. Crystal Automation Systems in Missouri operates within 100 miles of the active duty Detroit Arsenal, the Free Beacon reported.
The two companies received grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and bought equipment from Chinese phone maker Huawei, according to the Free Beacon.
AT&T, Verizon, and other carriers have avoided Huawei amid pressure from lawmakers and intelligence officials that a security threat is possible, Business Insider reported in January.
The Federal Communications Commission named Huawei and a Chinese rival company, ZTE, in a statement after FCC Chairman Ajit Pai proposed a rule to prevent rural carriers from buying companies that posed security threats, the Free Beacon reported.
Lawmakers warn that China could use the equipment to conduct espionage or cyber attacks.
"Chinese telecom companies pose a real and growing threat to our national security and to Americans' privacy. We've been subsidizing them for far too long and I'm committed to cutting off their access to taxpayer dollars — whether through the FCC, USDA, or any other federal agency," Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., told the Free Beacon in a statement.
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