Huawei Was Never Barred From 5G, New Zealand Premier Says
Xu Wei
DATE:  Feb 20 2019
/ SOURCE:  yicai
Huawei Was Never Barred From 5G, New Zealand Premier Says Huawei Was Never Barred From 5G, New Zealand Premier Says

(Yicai Global) Feb. 20 -- Huawei Technologies was "never not allowed to run" the country's fifth-generation mobile network construction, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said yesterday.

She also emphasized that the New Zealand telecommunications service provider Spark New Zealand must alleviate 'security concerns' in its use of Huawei equipment Xinhua News Agency reported.

The claim that the country has closed its door to Huawei's 5G plan is wrong, Ardern said. 

Members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which comprises the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, who share espionage data, banned the use of Huawei equipment under pressure from the US. Ardern countered this claim, saying New Zealand will make its own independent decision on Huawei's 5G plan.

New Zealand's Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) barred Spark on Nov. 27 from using Huawei equipment in its planned 5G network, citing significant security risks

New Zealand legislation mandates that the GCSB independently conduct strict evaluation of telecommunications security, and their scrutiny raised security concerns about Huawei equipment. Spark is tasked with alleviating these security concerns, Ardern said.

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre had concluded the security risks posed by using Huawei equipment were manageable, citing anonymous sources, the London-based Financial Times reported on Feb. 17.

The report suggests that the NCSC's conclusions could influence security policies across Europe.

Ardern said in January this year at the World Economic Forum that New Zealand will treat Huawei fairly, adding New Zealand's legislative system provides a framework within which Spark and Huawei will have opportunities to address any security concerns.

Editor: Ben Armour

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Keywords:   Huawei,5G