Technology
United Kingdom decision on Huawei not set in stone, according to Minister
(Reuters) The decision of Britain to grant Huawei a limited role in building its 5 G network is not "fixed in stone" and a government update on the Chinese company will be published before July 22, said the Minister of Government and Official on Monday.
British relations with China have already been strained by Beijing's decision to adopt a new national security law in Hong Kong. Earlier this Monday, the country's ambassador to London, Liu Xiaoming, warned that getting rid of Huawei would send a "very bad message" to Chinese business.
Britain offered Huawei a limited role in its potential 5 G networks in January, but officials at the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) have since researched the effect of U.S. sanctions on the firm.
The measures are designed to restrict Huawei from providing advanced microchips, and Britain has indicated that they could have a significant impact on the reliability of the supplier.
"It's not in stone," said Oliver Dowden, UK digital minister, about an earlier decision to give the company a limited role. We constantly review our security to ensure that we have the best possible security for our telecommunications network.
Dowden declined to comment on claims that officials had made plans to stop installing Huawei equipment and said that any decisions should be reported in Parliament.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson 's spokesman said an announcement will be made to Parliament before the summer break starts on 22 July.
When the U.S. implements restrictions as they have imposed, we agree that they will have a huge effect on the reliability of Huawei's equipment and how we can use it safely, he said.
Liu said that a U-turn on the Huawei decision would undermine Britain 's reputation as an open, business-friendly climate, which meant that London needed to "bounce the tune of the other countries."
The corporate world of China is all watching how you treat Huawei. If you get rid of Huawei, it will give a really bad message to other Chinese companies, he said.
Source: Reuters; Article by Kate Holton and Elizabeth Piper; Edit by Michael Holden and Alex Richardson.
