It's Europe's turn to possibly give HUAWEI the cold shoulder

Huawei’s troubles might soon worsen in a vital market — according to Reuters, the European Commission might ban HUAWEI’s 5G network equipment in the European Union.

The European Commission is reportedly mulling over the ban due to security concerns. The concerns possibly include HUAWEI working with the Chinese government to provide backdoor access in its network equipment. This alleged backdoor would open up the equipment to cyber-espionage.

The U.S. and Australia restricted HUAWEI’s network equipment in the countries over these concerns. The U.S., in particular, has had a frosty relationship with HUAWEI as of late. The U.S. government most recently indicted HUAWEI on 13 counts, which include money laundering, obstruction of justice, and sanction violations.

However, to have a de-facto ban on the equipment in the European Union could have more far-reaching ramifications.

These ramifications might be the topic of conversation during the GSM Association’s (GSMA) board meeting in late February during Mobile World Congress 2019. Many European operators depend on HUAWEI to build out their 5G networks, so not having the proper equipment could delay their 5G rollouts.

The ban could also prevent Europe from remaining competitive with other regions, seeing how 5G also has implications for connected factories, self-driving vehicles, and more. Overall, the ban could set mobile operators back several years.

We reached out to HUAWEI for a comment on the matter and will update the article if we receive a response.

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