US telecoms watchdog to vote on barring sales of devices with parts from blacklisted firms

WASHINGTON, June 30 : The Federal Communications Commission, the U.S. telecoms watchdog, said on Tuesday it plans to vote next month on a measure that would bar sales of devices in the United States that contain components from blacklisted companies.

The FCC maintains a list of firms - including Chinese telecoms giant Huawei - whose equipment is barred for sale in the United States over national security concerns. But no regulations currently prohibit American sales of electronics such as smartphones that contain chips designed by Huawei's chip unit Hi-Silicon, for example.

The measure, if approved, will close a "loophole" and aims to "protect Americans from electronic devices that have been determined to pose unacceptable risks to the national security of the United States," the FCC said in the press release announcing the move.