After pager blasts, Chinese gear can come under heightened scrutiny
economictimes.indiatimes.com
China accounts for nearly one-third of global exports of electronic devices, and Chinese-made devices have already been raising security concerns.
Huawei, the Shenzhen-based Chinese telecom company, has for several years been at the centre of an intense technological rivalry between Beijing and Washington, with US officials warning its equipment could be used to spy on behalf of Chinese authorities, allegations that China has denied.
In July, Germany decided to phase out components made by Huawei and another Chinese telecom company ZTE from its 5G wireless network over the next five years. Germany's Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said, «In this way, we are protecting the central nervous systems of Germany as a business location — and we are protecting the communication of citizens, companies, and the state.» In the statement, the German government also stressed the importance of «secure and resilient telecommunications infrastructure,» considering the «dangers of sabotage and espionage.» Mobile network operators including Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom and Telefonica have agreed to remove the components made by Huawei and ZTE from their 5G core networks.
Germany's decision came after the US, UK, Australia, Japan and also India effectively banned the company from building their 5G networks amid fears that Beijing could use Chinese tech companies to spy on their citizens. Earlier in 2019, the US included Huawei in its trade restriction list, which made it harder for the company to buy semiconductor chips from
