Chairman Pai Speech at Council on Foreign Relations

It’s fair to say that a Council on Foreign Relations appearance by the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is out of the ordinary. But these are extraordinary times. We’re at a pivotal moment in the evolution of communications technology. Across America and around the world, private companies have begun rolling out the next generation of wireless technology—commonly known as 5G. For all the opportunities that 5G will unlock, it will also create new challenges. Chief among these is the main subject of my remarks: network security. If China is willing to use its leverage over basketball, e-sports, and emojis, imagine what could happen if we let Chinese companies’ equipment into tomorrow’s 5G wireless networks. This would open the door to surveillance, espionage, and other harms—stakes much higher than sports and entertainment.

So what can we do to secure our networks? First, we need to make sure that the equipment going into 5G networks is from trusted vendors— that the companies entering this space won’t risk our national security, threaten our economic security, or undermine our values. But it’s not enough to ensure that risky equipment won’t be installed into the networks of the future. That’s why we’re also working to secure existing networks. At our Nov public meeting, the FCC will also vote on launching a process to remove and replace such equipment from Universal Service Fund-funded communications networks. My plan calls first for an assessment to find out exactly how much equipment from Huawei and another Chinese company, ZTE, is in these networks, followed by financial assistance to help these carriers make the transition to more trusted vendors. We’ll seek public input on how big this “rip and replace” program needs to be and how best to finance it. Our goal is to close security gaps in a fiscally responsible way. The third thing we need to continue to do is to engage with our international partners. The fourth and final thing that I will highlight is the need to leverage our nation’s leadership in software to mitigate security risks. If we can virtualize functions of the radio access network, we can not only reduce the cost of deploying 5G networks but reduce reliance on foreign equipment manufacturers.