GTE and Siemens announced a joint venture.

The new venture, to be owned 80% by West Germany’s Siemens AG, will offer telecommunications equipment in a worldwide market. GTE’s U.S. and international transmission systems and its switching and business systems operations in Taiwan, Italy and Belgium, as well as other companies, would be folded into the new operation, which is expected to be headquartered in the United States. GTE of Stamford, Conn., and Siemens will continue to compete for switching systems business in the United States.