UK not in favour of full Huawei ban
It’s not that simple, say government security officials
British security officials do not back a full ban on Huawei from national telecoms networks despite US allegations that Beijing could use the Chinese group and its products to spy, say informed sources.
Huawei, the world’s biggest producer of telecoms equipment, faces intense scrutiny in the West over its relationship with the Chinese government and allegations of facilitating state espionage.
The US has called on its allies not to use its technology.
No evidence has been disclosed publicly and Huawei has denied the claims, but the claim has led several Western countries to restrict its access to their markets.
“We don’t favour a complete ban. It’s not that simple,” one of the sources said on Monday after the Financial Times reported on Sunday that the British government’s National Cyber Security Council (NCSC) decided it could mitigate the risks of using Huawei equipment in 5G networks.
The paper quoted two sources familiar with what it said was a conclusion by the council, which said in 2018 that technical problems with Huawei’s equipment exposed national telecom networks to new security risks. Huawei had no immediate comment.
A decision to let Huawei participate in building 5G networks would be closely watched by other governments because of Britain’s membership of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing group with the US.
Britain is also an important market for Huawei.
Vodafone, the world’s second-largest mobile operator, said in January it was “pausing” deployment of its equipment in core networks until Western governments give the Chinese group full security clearance.
Other operators in Europe, including Britain’s BT and France’s Orange, have already removed Huawei’s equipment or taken steps to limit its use.
Two sources said that the NCSC did not think it necessary to bar Huawei completely from British networks, believing it could go on managing risks by testing the products at a special laboratory overseen by intelligence officials.
Both sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said the position was consistent with public statements by the NCSC and British officials.
“As was made clear in July’s HCSEC oversight board, the NCSC has concerns around Huawei’s engineering and security capabilities. We have set out the improvements we expect the company to make,” an NCSC spokesperson said on Monday.
People with knowledge of the matter said the next NCSC report on Huawei’s position in Britain would criticise its slow response to issues raised in 2018’s report and detail tense relations with British officials. The report, expected to be released soon, does not set government policy.
The results of a government review of British telecoms infrastructure is expected later in 2019 and will contain recommendations on managing security risks.
Fellow Five Eyes member Australia has banned Huawei from supplying 5G equipment, while New Zealand said on Monday that it will make an independent assessment of the risk of using Huawei equipment in 5G networks.
Huawei has set up security labs in Britain and Germany aimed at building confidence that its equipment does not contain “back doors” for Chinese intelligence services.
It has also offered to build a cybersecurity centre in Poland, where authorities have arrested a Chinese Huawei employee along with a former security official from Poland.
Alex Younger, head of Britain’s MI6 foreign intelligence service, said last week it was more complicated than “in or out” when asked if Britain is trying to manage risks perceived as being attached to Huawei instead of just banning it.
According to Younger, it is not desirable that “any piece of significant national infrastructure is provided from a monopoly supplier”.