A report by the UK Parliament’s Defence Committee has said that Huawei technology posed a risk to Britain and its citizens. The company has argued the report was not based on facts.
The new report, titled ‘The Security of 5G’, published on Thursday, said Huawei was “clearly strongly linked to the Chinese state and the Chinese Communist Party, despite its statements to the contrary.” The document based its evidence on the company’s ownership model and the subsidies it has received.
“Our inquiry found that there is clear evidence of collusion between Huawei and the Chinese state,” the Members of Parliament wrote, in support of their decision to remove the company’s equipment from the UK’s networks. “The presence of Huawei in the UK’s 5G networks posed a significant security risk to individuals and to our Government,” they concluded.
The lawmakers further argued that the designation of Huawei as a high-risk vendor by the UK authorities in January was “justified.”
Defence Committee chair Tobias Ellwood said national security should be the government’s top priority.
Huawei has slammed the allegations as false.
The report comes as the US has stepped up its efforts to convince its key allies in Europe, such as the UK and Germany, to push Huawei out of the development of their 5G networks. Washington has insisted it was necessary to prevent surveillance and espionage by Beijing. China, for its part, has repeatedly denied using Huawei for the purpose of espionage and surveillance.
Initially, the UK had been reluctant to take strong action against Huawei, but in July, the government ordered mobile providers to remove all Huawei equipment from 5G networks by 2027. The company warned that the move would only hamper the development of modern telecoms technology in the UK and “push up bills” for regular customers.
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