UK govt bans the use of Huawei’s 5G equipment

LONDON: The Boris Johnson government on Tuesday announced the removal of existing equipment of Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer Huawei by 2027 and a ban on buying new equipment from the company from December 31 this year, reflecting an escalation of tensions with Beijing.

China has warned the UK of consequences if it were to ban Huawei.

The decision follows pressure from the US government, which has also banned the company as part of its sanction, and a technical review by the UK’S National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) in response to US sanctions.

Digital secretary Oliver Dowden said in a statement to the House of Commons: “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”. Officials said the decision was taken on Wednesday in a meeting of the NCSC chaired by Johnson, in response to new US sanctions. The government will now seek to legislate a new Telecoms Security Bill to secure the powers necessary to implement this tough new telecoms security framework.