On Thursday night, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Germany expressed strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to Germany’s decision to exclude Huawei and ZTE telecom equipment from the 5G network, warning that the move will seriously undermine mutual trust between the two sides and also affect future cooperation between China and the EU in related fields.
Chinese experts who have evaluated the issue also said on Friday that Germany’s decision shows that it is under further pressure from the US and the EU, noting that excluding Chinese components from the 5G network will have a significant cost and hinder the country’s communications development.
In a preliminary agreement due to “security concerns”, the German government and the country’s telecoms operators have agreed in principle on steps to remove components made by Chinese companies from the country’s 5G mobile network over the next five years, Reuters reported on Thursday.
In response, the Chinese spokesperson said that Huawei, ZTE and other Chinese communications companies have long been operating in Germany in accordance with the law and have made a positive contribution to Germany’s digitalisation process.
The alleged cybersecurity risk is “nothing more than an excuse”, the spokesperson said, adding that it is essentially the behaviour of individual countries to pressure their competitors in order to maintain their own scientific and technological hegemony. In fact, no country has yet provided conclusive evidence of the existence of safety risks in the equipment of Chinese companies, the spokesperson added.
“The German side’s announcement of the decision during the NATO summit in Washington has caused China to seriously question the independence of Berlin’s decision-making,” the spokesman said.
The Chinese official said Germany’s move was “blatant political discrimination” that seriously undermined mutual trust between the two sides and would also affect future China-EU cooperation in related areas.
“Germany’s move can be seen as politicising economic cooperation, as it is now facing more pressure from the US and the EU,” Sun Yanhong, a senior research fellow at the Institute of European Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Friday.
Sun noted that Germany’s digital infrastructure is relatively backward, while Huawei and ZTE’s equipment is leading in terms of technology, integrated solutions and low-cost products, which will be a “loss” for Germany.
“The cost of the transition is expected to be significant, which will limit the development of all areas of the country’s digital economy, including smart driving, smart healthcare and production automation factories,” the expert warned.
Meanwhile, the Chinese embassy spokesperson stressed that Beijing will take necessary measures to protect the legitimate interests of Chinese companies.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian also said at a press conference on Thursday that China hopes Germany will respect facts and make reasonable decisions, and urges the European country to create a fair market environment for enterprises from all countries, including Chinese enterprises.
