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Hunter: “Our Nation’s Security Must Always Prevail”
Armed Services Committee Ranking Republican Hails Withdrawal of Foreign Merger Tainted by Significant National Security Concerns
Washington D.C. – U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), the senior Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, today released the following statement regarding the decision by 3Com Corporation, Bain Capital Partners, and Huawei Technologies to withdraw their joint filing with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS):
“This proposed transaction presented significant security concerns from the beginning and I am pleased that the involved parties have withdrawn their application. In this instance, it appears the CFIUS process has worked.
“The foreign acquisition of American defense contractors will continue to present significant problems and challenges. In the future, we must weigh American security interests before potential profits.
“Our nation’s security interests must always prevail.
“It is my hope that this proposed transaction will not be repackaged and presented to CFIUS for further review.”
Among other business relationships, a resolution introduced in the House of Representatives opposing the proposed deal (H.Res. 730), indicates that:
· Huawei was identified by U.S. intelligence agencies as the supplier of fiber optic equipment to Iraqi air defense systems during the late 1990s; and
· In August 2002, Huawei was complicit in the development of state-of-the-art telephone surveillance equipment for the former Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
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