Concerns over Chinese involvement in 5G wireless networks

Germany will bar the use of critical components made by Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE in core parts of the country's 5G networks in two steps starting in 2026, the nation's top security official have said.

Germany, which has Europe's biggest economy, has long mulled what to do about components made by Chinese suppliers in its new-generation cellphone networks.

Chinese telecoms giant Huawei said on Aug. 25 it had renewed a licensing agreement with Ericsson to use each other's technologies, in a rebuff to U.S. warnings about the risk of espionage by Beijing.

Huawei has been at the center of an intense technological rivalry between China and the United States, which suspects the company of spying for Beijing, accusations Huawei denies.

U.S. authorities on April 19 imposed a $300 million penalty on Seagate Technology, to resolve alleged violations of export controls related to selling hard disk drives to Huawei Technologies, the Commerce Department said.

The manufacturer was involved in the shipment of hard disk drives valued over $1.1 billion to Huawei entities despite U.S. controls.

The US administration has suspended the export licenses of American companies for the production of the Chinese telecommunications equipment manufacturer Huawei and is considering the introduction of а ban, the Financial Times reported.

Huawei said on Jan. 30 it has initiated arbitration proceedings against Sweden under the World Bank Group after the Nordic country banned the Chinese tech giant from rolling out its 5G products.

Founded in 1987, Huawei is among the leading global providers of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. With more than 197,000 employees, the company operates in more than 170 countries and regions. Radoslaw Kedzia has been employed by Huawei Technologies since 2008, becoming Vice President CEE & Nordic Region in August 2019.

The government wants to make money from the 5G auction and I don't believe it's the best approach, because it would be important to have good services at affordable prices, the president of the Competition Council, Bogdan Chiritoiu, said on Thursday. "The Romanian government, which has been different every year, has told us that it wants to hold a 5G auction.

South Korea is the country that deployed the first 5G network

Wind Hellas announced this week it has selected Ericsson for the development of its 5G network across Greece, with the Swedish company also cooperating with the Greek service provider in the sector of business support.

5G technology has been tested in the Slovenian seaside town of Koper as part of a larger European project funded by the European Commission. 

Telecom Slovenia has already installed the technical equipment at the port in the city, and the inspection of the network is planned to continue until the end of the summer.