Pompeo urges EU to exclude 'high-risk suppliers' from 5G networks
30/01/2020 20:46
By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Jan 30 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo on Thursday urged the European Union to exclude
"high-risk" suppliers from all parts of 5G networks.
The EU on Wednesday followed Britain's example, allowing
members to decide what part China's Huawei Technologies HWT.UL
can play in its 5G telecoms networks and resisting pressure from
Washington for an outright ban.
The United States wants the world to ban Huawei from the
West's next-generation 5G networks on fears that its gear could
be used by China for spying, allegations which the company has
strongly rejected. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N29Y39S urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N29Y33W
EU countries can either restrict or exclude high-risk 5G
vendors like Huawei from core parts of their telecoms networks,
according to the new guidelines, which seek to address the
cybersecurity risks to the bloc's 28 countries at a national and
EU level.
Pompeo praised the EU's Network Information Security
Cooperation Group recommended measures to mitigate security
risks in 5G networks. The group acknowledged suppliers with high
risk profiles should face additional restrictions, Pompeo said.
"It is misguided to think that the risks associated with
installing equipment from suppliers subject to control by
authoritarian regimes with a track record of malign cyber
behavior can be mitigated," Pompeo said.
Britain granted Huawei a limited role in its 5G mobile
network on Tuesday, frustrating an attempt by the United States
to exclude the Chinese telecoms giant from the West's
next-generation communications. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N29X252 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N29Y4O9
Huawei is the world's biggest producer of telecoms
equipment, competing with Sweden's Ericsson ERICb.ST and
Finland's Nokia NOKIA.HE .
The European Union sees 5G as key to boosting economic
growth and competing with the United States and China, and its
recommendations, agreed by EU members, are that individual
countries assess the risks and decide whether to exclude
suppliers from core infrastructure, confirming a Reuters report
on Jan. 22. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N29R3QG
Huawei welcomed the guidelines, describing them as
non-biased and fact-based.
The commission said it was ready to bolster the bloc's 5G
cybersecurity by using trade defense tools against dumping or
foreign subsidies.
Lobbying group ETNO, whose members include Deutsche Telekom
DTEGn.DE , Orange ORAN.PA and Telefonica TEF.MC , which all
use Huawei equipment, had warned against disproportionate
actions which may affect their investments.
EU countries have until April to implement the guidelines
and June to report on their progress.
(Reporting by David Shepardson
Editing by Leslie Adler)
((David.Shepardson@thomsonreuters.com; 2028988324;))