United Kingdom Bans Huawei From its 5G Network

The United Kingdom has banned Huawei from its 5G telecom network, reversing a January decision to allow the 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.”

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.

That triggered another UK security review of the company’s involvement in the British network, leading to today’s decision by the National Security Council to order the phased removal of its technology.

The decision is a huge blow for Huawei, which has operated in Britain for 20 years.

Europe is a key market for the company, accounting for 24% of sales last year.

Huawei on Monday announced half-year results earlier than usual, reporting slower revenue growth.

The company is already experiencing a decline in smartphone sales after Washington blocked it from accessing popular Google apps. The phones became a lot less attractive in markets outside of China as a result.

Huawei said it was confident that the recent US sanctions would not have affected “the resilience or security” of its products and described the UK announcement as disappointing.

“It threatens to move Britain into the digital slow lane, push up bills and deepen the digital divide,” said Ed Brewster, a spokesperson for Huawei UK. “Regrettably our future in the UK has become politicized, this is about US trade policy and not security.”