At the G20 summit this weekend, US President Donald Trump reversed the block on US companies selling to Chinese vendor, Huawei.
Trump met with China’s Premier Xi Jinping at the G20 gathering in Osaka, Japan, on Saturday.
“US companies can sell their equipment to Huawei,” Trump commented.
The move comes six weeks after Huawei was blacklisted by the US government. President Trump had claimed that the ban was related to concerns about security and state spying (which Huawei strongly denies) but Huawei argued that the issue was politically motivated.
Late last month, Huawei filed a motion for a summary judgment against the US government to overturn the trade ban.
U-turn?
Trump said this weekend that Huawei will still be part of trade discussions between the US and China, but for the time being at least, US companies will be allowed to sell to the Chinese firm, whose headquarters are in Shenzhen, China (pictured).
In response, the “Huawei facts” official Twitter account tweeted, “U-turn? Donald Trump suggests he would allow Huawei to once again purchase US technology!”
The ongoing dispute between Huawei and the US has caused concern in the telecoms industry.
A report published in April by research firm Assembly, commissioned by mobile trade body Mobile UK, found that restricting the use of Huawei kit in the telecoms supply chain – even partially – could delay 5G’s widespread roll-out in the UK by up to two years.
Possible impact
Despite broad agreement that Huawei’s technology is among the most advanced in the world, the UK has banned Huawei from core 5G networks, but will probably allow it in other areas, although the government is yet to announced its final decision.
KPN in the Netherlands will insist on a “Western vendor” for the core 5G network, noting this part of the network is more sensitive from a security point of view.
Among the telcos planning to operate a 5G network in the Republic of Ireland, none has included Huawei technology in the network core, the Irish Times reported recently.
The German regulator’s guidelines recommend multi-vendor infrastructure for 5G and Huawei 5G has not been explicitly or implicitly banned.