The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has designated two Chinese companies – Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corporation as national security threats.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said both Huawei and ZTE have close ties with Chinese Communist Party and China’s military apparatus. He said, US government will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to exploit vulnerabilities in US communications networks.

The FCC has increasingly scrutinised Chinese companies as tensions grow between Beijing and Washington over trade, the coronavirus and security issues.

The agency is considering banning these Chinese telephone companies from entering the US market. The US contends that Huawei’s equipment could be used by China for spying.