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Global Crossing deal 'may get nod'
SINGAPORE (Reuters) -- A $250 million bid by Singapore Technologies Telemedia to buy bankrupt U.S. telecommunications company Global Crossing is likely to be accepted later this month, according to the Straits Times newspaper. The paper Tuesday quoted Global Crossing's Chief Executive Officer John Legere in an interview that he was sure the Singapore investment would be approved. There have been fears the deal might not go through because of U.S. concerns about an overseas business buying a U.S. company that handles sensitive national security data. Legere said he believed these concerns had been addressed adequately. The deal is being reviewed by the Committee on Foreign Investment, chaired by U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow. The committee will present its views to President George W. Bush by Thursday, after which Bush will have 15 days to decide whether to let the Singapore takeover go ahead. "Between September 4 and 19, President Bush will decide. I'm confident that it will be a positive outcome," Legere said. ST Telemedia, a subsidiary of government investment agency Temasek Holdings, made its $250 million bid to take a controlling interest of 61.5 per cent in Global Crossing last year. But because Global Crossing's fibre-optic network carries sensitive information, members of the intelligence community questioned the deal on security grounds. In an bid to reassure the United States, Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong wrote to Vice President Dick Cheney in July. Legere said the security concerns were less about Singapore's ownership of the U.S. telecom firm and more about seeking to establish a general policy for the overseas ownership of critical infrastructure in the United States. "I haven't heard of anybody having a question about Singapore Technologies or about Singapore's ownership in general. I don't believe there is an opposition to Singapore," he said. Global Crossing has eight contracts with the US Department of Defense, none of which is classified or otherwise requires security clearance, the report said. Copyright 2003 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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