Merkel on Huawei: Germany won’t exclude 5G providers just because they come from China

Angela Merkel has said that her government will not exclude Huawei or any other company from helping to develop 5G in Germany simply because they come from China, in a clear rebuke of Washington’s stance on the issue.

“The government has said our approach is not to simply exclude one company or one actor, but rather we have requirements of the competitors for this 5G technology,” Merkel said at the annual Global Solutions Summit in Berlin on Tuesday.

The chancellor explained that regulations related to 5G development in Germany would be laid out in new telecommunications legislation.

“And then we shall then talk to our partners, because they have their ideas as well,” she added.

Merkel’s comments come a week after she stated that Germany would define its own security standards for a new 5G mobile network. In recent months, Washington has been pressuring its allies to reject working with Huawei. In Germany’s case, US Ambassador Richard Grenell sent a letter to the country’s Economy Minister Peter Altmaier, warning of security concerns linked to Huawei’s role in building critical infrastructure.

Ignoring Washington’s warning may result in downgraded intelligence-sharing between the two nations, Grenell’s letter said. Berlin has protested against US objections, noting that Washington has failed to provide any evidence that Chinese products would pose a security threat.

Former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder lambasted Grenell’s letter as “blatant extortion.”

The Chinese electronics giant has not been sitting quietly as Washington moves to push it out of the international market. Huawei announced in early March that it was filing a lawsuit against the US government over its decision to ban federal agencies from using its products.

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