China’s Huawei, ZTE set to be shut out of India’s 5G trials over national security concerns
- India’s decision echoes actions by the US, UK and Australia, which have raised red flags about Huawei’s Chinese government links
- Telecom companies were expected to invest US$4 billion to set up India’s 5G infrastructure, according to IDC estimates
China’s Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corp. are set to be kept out of India’s plans to roll out its 5G networks as relations between the two countries hit a four decade low following deadly border clashes.
The South Asian nation will apply investment rules amended on July 23 that cite national security concerns to restrict bidders from nations it shares land borders with to keep out the companies, people familiar with the issue said, asking not to be identified citing rules for speaking with the media.
The Ministry of Communications will restart pending discussions on approvals for 5G trials by private companies including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio Infocomm, and Vodafone Idea that were delayed by the nationwide lockdown, they said.
India’s decision echoes actions by the US, UK and Australia, which have raised red flags about the companies’ Chinese government links. The US Federal Communications Commission has officially declared both companies national security threats.
The process to auction 5G may spill into next year, according to the officials. A decision on the ban is expected to be announced in a week or two after approval from the prime minister’s office, they said.
A spokesman for the communications ministry and the prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to queries seeking comment. Huawei and ZTE did not respond to emails seeking comments.
