Former Joint Chiefs Chairman to Join Board of Sprint

Sprint announced that Admiral Mike Mullen would join the company’s board after its proposed $20.1 billion sale to SoftBank of Japan closes.

Admiral Mullen, 66, who had served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 2007 to September 2011, would serve as an independent director as well as the company’s security director. He is also on the board of General Motors. His appointment would satisfy one of the concessions that the companies agreed to win government approval for the merger. Sprint and SoftBank have been working for months to ease fears of government agencies and lawmakers over national security issues. Some Congressional leaders have expressed concerned about SoftBank’s ties to Chinese telecommunications equipment makers. In addition, Dish Network, which is seeking to wrest Sprint away from SoftBank with a $25.5 billion offer, has mounted an effort to fan worries about a foreign takeover of a major American telecommunications company.