National security prompts amendment
By : Roseanne Gerin
The Council of Ministers adopted an amendment to the new telecommunications act last week that will require operators to obtain permits for international data transmission service.
The amendment was issued after a special government commission investigating the controversial Yamal gas pipeline, whose fiber-optic cable runs through Poland, said the state needed to regain supervisory control over transnational telecom networks.
The amendment establishes a three-month period during which operators must file permit applications with the Telecommunications Regulatory Office (URT), the body that oversees telecom regulations. The requirement would be in force until Poland enters the European Union.
Przemyslaw Sypniewski, an adviser to Communications Minister Tomasz Szyszko, said he expected the Sejm to pass the amendment quickly because of the sensivity of the subiect.
According to the government, besides being a national security issue, the fiber-optic cable could provide the state with a large amount of revenue from data transmission services. "The case of the Yamal pipeline showed that internal lines can also be used for commercial purposes," Sypniewski said, adding that the matter was an attempt to circumvent the state treasury's interests.
The fiber-optic cable, which runs parallel to the Yamal pipeline, was intended for operators to transmit data to regulate gas flow. The cable is capable of handling all telephone traffic between Russia and Western Europe. The cable is owned by EuRoPol Gaz, a joint partnership between state-owned Polish Gas and Oil Mining (PGNiG) and Gazprom, Russia's largest natural gas producer, which installed the pipeline.
Pol-Gaz Telekom, the company that manages the cable on behalf of PGNiG and Gazprom, has already filed an application for a data transmission permit with the URT.
Szyszko established a special commission last year to investigate the fiber-optic cable and present its findings to the government. The ministry said in November that the Polish government had not authorized the construction of the cable for international telecommunications services. The commission, which included representatives from the URT, analyzed the laws of other countries where legislation includes regulations to safeguard state supervision over critical lines, Sypniewski said.
A provision for operating permits was included in the original version of the current telecom law, but was dropped by the Sejm when members of Parliament were debating the legislation last year, Sypniewski said. The new requirement to obtain permits would apply to all operators regardless of the type of service they provide through telecom networks, he added.
