Australia blocks Huawei, ZTE

Sydney : Chinese telecom giants Huawei and ZTE have effectively been banned from rolling out Australia’s 5G network after Canberra warned of security risks with companies beholden to foreign governments, prompting Beijing to denounce “ideological biases”. Huawei  has been under scrutiny in some countries, including the United States and Australia, over its alleged close links to Beijing.

It was blocked from bidding for contracts on Australia’s ambitious national broadband project in 2012, reportedly due to concerns about cyber-security. The company has long disputed claims of any links to the Chinese government. Canberra said in a statement that the “involvement of vendors who are likely to be subject to extrajudicial directions from a foreign government that conflict with Australian law” posed a security risk.

Acting Home Affairs Minister Scott Morrison and Communications Minister Mitch Fifield added that there was “no combination of technical security controls that sufficiently mitigate the risks”. In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China was “gravely concerned”, accusing Canberra of making “all types of excuses to create hurdles and taking discriminatory measures”.

“We urge the Australian side to abandon ideological biases and create a sound environment for the fair competition of Chinese enterprises in Australia,” Lu said. Huawei Australia tweeted that the decision was an “extremely disappointing result for consumers”. “Huawei is a world leader in 5G. Has safely & securely delivered wireless technology in Aust for close to 15 yrs,” the firm said.