Chinese telecom giant Huawei Technologies Co (華為) on Tuesday said that it would set up manufacturing hubs in Europe, as it tries to fight off US pressure on EU nations to stop it from operating.
“Huawei is more committed to Europe than ever before,” the company’s top executive for Europe, Abraham Liu (劉康), said during a Lunar New Year reception in Brussels. “That’s why we have decided we want to set up manufacturing bases in Europe — so that we can truly have 5G for Europe made in Europe.”
The announcement came just days after the EU recommended that member states could ban telecoms operators deemed a security risk from critical parts of 5G infrastructure.
Photo: Bloomberg
However, the EU plan, which closely mirrored rules set out by Britain allowing a limited role for Huawei, stopped short of barring the firm from the next-generation communications network designed for near-instantaneous data transfers.
Those guidelines were the fruit of months of agonizing within the EU, which has struggled to find a middle way to balance Huawei’s huge dominance in the 5G sector with security concerns pressed by Washington.
Liu in his speech acknowledged that the tech world “is increasingly entangled with geopolitical issues, trade negotiations and diplomatic dialogue between nations.”
“Politically motivated suspicion does not address the challenges ahead,” he added, in a veiled admonishment to Washington.
He also urged Europe, the US and China to “invest more, in political discussion, to talk about collaboration and common rules.”
In Europe, a ban on Huawei will now ultimately be up to member states, but the European Commission’s middle-road recommendations give cover to European capitals to resist US pleas.
Building factories in Europe would also help persuade EU nations to turn away from tough measures against Huawei, with all eyes on Germany, which has delayed its decision on a possible ban.
Huawei said it employs more than 13,000 staff, and runs two regional centers and 23 research centers in 12 EU nations.
Huawei is one of the world’s leading network technology suppliers, and one of the few — along with European telecom companies Nokia Oyj and Ericsson AB — capable of building 5G networks.
The US sees the company as a potential threat to cybersecurity and fears it would facilitate cyberespionage by the Chinese government, to which it is said to have close links.
US President Donald Trump administration plans to meet this month to discuss further curbing exports to China and Huawei, two sources said, in a bid to resolve differences within the government over the possible crackdown.
The gathering, scheduled for Feb. 28, is to bring together high-level officials for talks after the US Department of Commerce withdrew a rule aimed at further reducing foreign shipments to Huawei amid pushback from the US Department of Defense, one of the people said.
The meeting, which is expected to include Cabinet-level officials, including Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, is aimed at addressing how best to approach the blacklisted Chinese company and the broader war with China over technological dominance.
“The administration has to decide how to match its rhetoric on China with policies to deny China key technology and industry,” said Tim Morrison, a former senior director at the White House’s National Security Council under Trump, who favors tougher rules.
“Too many tools have not been brought to the president, because the entire administration isn’t yet in the fight. That must end,” he added.
US companies have said the measures that have been floated would harm US business by driving customers to foreign competitors, while doing little to thwart Huawei.
The agencies did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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