The United Kingdom has banned Huawei from its 5G telecom network, reversing a January decision to allow the embattled Chinese tech company a limited role in building the country’s super-fast wireless infrastructure.
Operators such as BT and Vodafone have been given until 2027 to remove existing Huawei equipment from their 5G networks, the UK government announced on Tuesday. Digital and Culture Minister Oliver Dowden said new US sanctions imposed on the company in May had “significantly changed” the landscape.
“Given the uncertainty this creates around Huawei’s supply chain, the UK can no longer be confident it will be able to guarantee the security of future Huawei 5G equipment,” Dowden said.
The decision is a big win for the Trump administration, which has been pushing allies to exclude Huawei from their 5G networks, arguing that the Chinese company is a threat to national security. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declared last month that “the tide is turning against Huawei as citizens around the world are waking up to the danger of the Chinese Communist Party’s surveillance state,” reported CNN.
But it risks a backlash from China as Britain looks for new trading opportunities around the world after Brexit, and will delay the rollout of 5G across the country by at least a year, Dowden said.
The US campaign against Huawei was having mixed success until the new sanctions in May further reduced the company’s ability to manufacture and obtain semiconductor chips using American-made technology.
Full Content: CNN
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