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WASHINGTON - Following a robust interagency process that included the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM), the White House announced on Friday the finalization of the Implementation Plan for the National Strategy to Secure 5G.

The Implementation Plan has four lines of effort and will be managed under the leadership of the National Security Council and the National Economic Council, supported by the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and with contributions from and coordination among a wide range of departments and agencies, including EXIM.

The Implementation Plan addresses the need for EXIM to provide competitive deal financing for trusted vendors "to level the playing field against the substantial state subsidies and financing that some untrusted vendors receive. The goal of this activity is to provide a comprehensive set of financing support, technical assistance, and expertise that empowers countries to implement 5G security measures and procure equipment from trusted vendors."

"The People's Republic of China's aggressive global expansion in 5G challenges our prosperity and security. EXIM, through close partnership with the private sector, and as part of a whole-of-government approach, supports the development, deployment, and management of secure, reliable 5G communications infrastructure worldwide, arm-in-arm with our closest allies and partners," said EXIM Chairman Kimberly Reed. "I specifically want to commend National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien for his leadership on this critical issue. As he noted in his statement 'This Strategy and Implementation Plan keep the Administration's promise to protect the national security, economy, and critical infrastructure of our Nation by ensuring we are well-postured to secure this critical technology.'"

Specifically, the "Plan for Technical Assistance for International Partners" notes the following:

United States Export-Import Bank (EXIM) will support United States exports of 5G technologies by providing (1) loan guarantees, (2) trade credit insurance, (3) working capital guarantees, and (4) direct loans. EXIM can work in a wide range of markets, offering support for public and private sector borrowers to procure trusted 5G equipment and services with United States content. EXIM will maintain a series of co-financing structures with partner export credit agencies from like-minded countries such as Korea, Japan, Finland, and Sweden to support 5G procurement from United States vendors and trusted vendors from other countries. Where feasible, EXIM will collaborate with export credit agencies from partner countries to offer streamlined joint financing for projects that include content from both countries. EXIM has joint finance agreements with sixteen export credit agencies and does not require a standing agreement to co-finance deals with other export credit agencies. 

EXIM will support viable deals that comply with OECD guidelines. When there is evidence of a competing offer with State-backed financing terms that are more generous than those allowed under OECD export credit rules, EXIM would consider, under the auspices of its new Congressionally mandated Program on China and Transformational Exports (the Program), matching a Chinese competitor's financial terms to help level the playing field for United States exports. Under the Program, EXIM will support United States innovation, employment, and leadership in next generation wireless communications equipment and services.

The finalization of the Implementation Plan follows a December, 17, 2020, unanimous EXIM Board of Directors vote to establish a narrowly-tailored content policy specific to the agency's new Program on China and Transformational Exports after a comprehensive stakeholder outreach and public comment period, creating a far better path for U.S. exporters in 10 transformational export sectors, which includes wireless communications (including 5G) to utilize EXIM support.

David Trulio, Senior Vice President for the Program on China and Transformational Exports, noted that, "EXIM is committed to supporting American jobs by neutralizing Chinese export subsidies and helping to level the playing field for U.S. exporters." Trulio continued, "Through its export credit products, and empowered by the content policy for transformational exports unanimously adopted by EXIM's Board last month, EXIM is eager to support American jobs by advancing the responsible development and deployment of secure and reliable 5G equipment and services."

EXIM National Security Advisor Jamal Ware added, "Over the past twenty months, Chairman Reed and the entire team have been hard at work to reopen and transform EXIM after four years of dormancy. As EXIM's first-ever National Security Advisor, I am pleased to say that EXIM is now positioned as an important tool in the U.S. toolbox to help American companies and trusted vendors compete against the People's Republic of China in the race for global 5G deployment. EXIM's ability to support, if needed, U.S. companies and our allies in the strategic 5G space is why the National Security Council included EXIM to help execute the Implementation Plan of the National Strategy to Secure 5G."

ABOUT EXIM:

EXIM is an independent federal agency that promotes and supports American jobs by providing competitive and necessary export credit to support sales of U.S. goods and services to international buyers. A robust EXIM can level the global playing field for U.S. exporters when they compete against foreign companies that receive support from their governments. EXIM also contributes to U.S. economic growth by helping to create and sustain hundreds of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. In recent years, approximately 90 percent of the total number of the agency's authorizations has directly supported small businesses. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt.

For more information about EXIM, please visit www.exim.gov.