China Unicom has become the latest Chinese telecoms giant to be banned from the US over “significant” national security and espionage concerns.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said it had voted unanimously to revoke authorisation for the company’s American unit to operate in the US.
The firm must stop providing telecoms services in America within 60 days.
The announcement comes after larger rival China Telecom had its licence to operate in the US revoked in October.
FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement: “There has been mounting evidence – and with it, a growing concern – that Chinese state-owned carriers pose a real threat to the security of our telecommunications networks.”
In a statement emailed to the BBC, China Unicom said its American unit “has a good record of complying with relevant US laws and regulations and providing telecommunication services and solutions as a reliable partner of its customers in the past two decades”.
