EU Recommends Excluding Huawei and ZTE Equipment from Communication Infrastructure
The European Commission has recommended that member states exclude equipment from Huawei and ZTE from their telecom operators' connection infrastructure. This encourages member states to refrain from procuring or using equipment from these suppliers in future network construction and upgrades.
According to a spokesperson, the EU is about to approve a new package of network security rules that will grant the EU the power to ban the use of equipment from "high-risk vendors" across the EU market. Once the rules take effect, the EU can not only issue policy recommendations to member states but may also take binding market access restrictions in specific cases.
This move is seen as the latest manifestation of the EU's further tightening of regulation in the security of critical communication infrastructure, focusing on potential cybersecurity risks in the construction of next-generation networks such as 5G. The EU side emphasized that the design of the rules aims to reduce the dependence of critical infrastructure on single or high-risk vendors and enhance overall network security resilience.
While the EU is pushing to tighten network security rules, China has recently reacted strongly to this. China has previously warned that if the EU formally implements the new regulations, China will consider taking countermeasures. Beijing believes that the EU's proposed network security rules are "discriminatory" and detrimental to normal economic and trade cooperation between China and Europe.
Currently, some EU member states have already restricted or reduced the participation of companies such as Huawei and ZTE in the construction of 5G and other communication networks at the national policy level. As the new rules progress, unified guidance at the EU level and potential bans could further affect operators' equipment supply choices and future investment layouts.