In another strong signal that telecom equipment maker Huawei is not welcome in the West, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered Huawei equipment to be purged completely from Britain’s 5G network by the end of 2027, siding with U.S. President Trump.
Reversing a January decision to allow Huawei to supply up to 35% of the non-core 5G network, Johnson banned British telecoms operators from buying any 5G equipment from Huawei by year-end and gave them seven years to rip out existing gear. “This has not been an easy decision, but it is the right one for the UK telecoms networks, for our national security and our economy, both now and indeed in the long run,” digital minister Oliver Dowden told parliament. “By the time of the next election, we will have implemented in law an irreversible path for the complete removal of Huawei equipment from our 5G networks.”
The Dec. 31, 2027 deadline will please British telecoms operators such as BT, Vodafone, and Three, which had feared they would be forced to spend billions of pounds to rip out Huawei equipment much faster…
London has been dismayed by a crackdown in Hong Kong and the perception China did not tell the whole truth over the novel coronavirus outbreak…
After Australia first raised alarms about the risk of 5G being hijacked by a hostile state, the West has become steadily more worried about Huawei. The United States calls the company an agent of the Chinese Communist state — a view widely supported in Johnson’s own Conservative Party.
Nokia and Ericsson said they stood ready to replace Huawei gear.
MacDailyNews Take: Good news, certainly, for Nokia, Ericsson, and every other non-CCP telecom equipment maker.