UK says Huawei 5G alternatives are “limited”
The UK is set to finally make a decision on Huawei’s role in building the country’s 5G network soon, a senior government minister has said.
Business minister Andrea Leadsom has confirmed that discussions are coming to a head, with one of the main sticking points being a lack of viable alternatives to Huawei’s expertise.
The UK is set to make a final decision on whether to allow Huawei to build its 5G infrastructure by the end of the month.
Ongoing
“Well there are other providers but they are limited, ideally there would be more providers of infrastructure similar to the work that Huawei does but the UK is looking very carefully at this issue and we will be making a final decision soon,” Leadsom told Sky in an interview.
“It is an ongoing process and there are all sorts of factors to take into consideration as you say like the availability of other providers, like the work that Huawei already done in the United Kingdom, so these discussions are ongoing,” she added.
Huawei has consistently denied allegations that the Chinese government would use its infrastructure to monitor activity in foreign powers.
Earlier this month, US politicians once again warned that allowing the Chinese technology giant to build on UK soil would be “nothing short of madness”. Last week, a US lawmaker proposed a bill that would prevent intelligence sharing with countries playing host to Huawei 5G infrastructure.
“We have a very close security relationship with the United States, we do share a lot of information, we share a lot of views and so it’s not at all unusual to see us having a contingent from the United States to come and share on some of these issues that affect all of us from a security point of view,” Leadsom added.
“I share the concerns of many citizens about protecting our national security interest.”
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Via Reuters
The UK is set to finally make a decision on Huawei’s role in building the country’s 5G network soon, a senior government minister has said. Business minister Andrea Leadsom has confirmed that discussions are coming to a head, with one of the main sticking points being a lack of viable…
