The Canadian government has announced that Huawei and ZTE telecommunications equipment and services will be banned across the country’s 5G and 4G networks.
The two Chinese IT giants have been deemed too significant a security danger to be allowed in the country’s telecommunication network, according to the statement, after a thorough evaluation by Canada’s independent security agencies.
“The Canadian government is currently working to ensure the long-term security of our telecommunications infrastructure. The government aims to restrict Huawei and ZTE goods and services from being used in Canada’s telecommunications systems as part of this “the announcement reads.
“The Government of Canada has severe concerns about vendors like Huawei and ZTE being forced to comply with extrajudicial orders from foreign governments in ways that would violate Canadian laws or be harmful to Canadian interests,” the policy statement continues.
Telecommunications service providers in Canada will no longer be able to use the two companies’ equipment or services as a result of this decision. Huawei and ZTE equipment should be withdrawn from their networks immediately.
Existing Huawei and ZTE 5G equipment will be required to be dismantled by June 28, 2024, while 4G equipment will have until December 31, 2027. Furthermore, by September 1, 2022, all new equipment and services from the two companies must be stopped.
Joining forces with allies
The United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, all close allies of Canada, have taken similar steps.
Germany, France, Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden have all expressed worries about the security of Huawei and ZTE telecom equipment, and they are all considering similar restrictions.
Existing Huawei and ZTE 5G equipment will be required to be dismantled by June 28, 2024, while 4G equipment will have until December 31, 2027. Furthermore, by September 1, 2022, all new equipment and services from the two companies must be stopped.
All of the foregoing has been refuted by Chinese companies. However, they have been unable to overturn political decisions that have been made against them, resulting in a significant decline in revenue from network infrastructure projects.
A delicate political ballet
The rollout of 5G networks in Canada began in February 2019, with Huawei as one of the main technological partners at the time.
When the US announced a “trade secrets theft” charge against Huawei’s CFO, Meng Wanzhou (who is also the company’s founder and CEO), in August 2019, it became evident that doing business with Huawei would be difficult for Canada.
By September 2020, Canada had changed its legislation to remove compensation provisions for telecommunication companies in the event of federal government equipment bans, saving $760,000,000.
However, due to political issues emerging from Meng’s presence in the nation, the ban on Huawei and ZTE could not be enacted at the time.
In December 2018, Meng was detained at Vancouver’s international airport, causing a breach between Canada and China. A request for extradition from the United States Department of Justice added to the confusion.
After several rounds of discussions, the parties reached an agreement on September 24, 2021, allowing Huawei’s CFO to return to China after serving 1,000 days in Vancouver under house arrest.
This eventually paved the way for the strategy that Canada had expressed a strong desire to pursue and had openly discussed numerous times recently. As a result of this event, the two countries’ relations are expected to sour once more.
