Europe wants to move away from using Chinese suppliers for 5G networks, but getting there will take time.
On Wednesday, the European Union released a set of “tools” that aim to limit the blocs dependence on Chinese telecom giant Huawei while boosting its domestic 5G industry.
The new measures are a far cry from a hard ban on Huawei — something that U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration have repeatedly urged EU countries to put in place over the past year.
But the measures are still a big step for Brussels and national capitals toward safeguarding networks from any perceived risks linked to Chinese companies as the bloc seeks to reshape relations with Beijing.
“With 5G were entering into a new world,” said Thierry Breton, the EUs internal market commissioner and cybersecurity chief. “Member states decided, for the first time in our history, that it would be appropriate to have a coordinated approach on protecting our infrastructure.”
The plans are the latest — and arguably strongest — move by European lawmakers to reshape the EU-China relationship ahead of two critical summits this year.
The EU texts do not mention Chinese 5G equipment-maker Huawei by name. But the list of recommended actions would allow EU capitals to limit Huaweis role in 5G networks across the Continent in coming years.
The toolbox comes one day after the U.K.s decision to keep Huaweis market access limited to peripheral, non-sensitive parts of 5G networks — a decision closely in line with the EUs measures.
The plans are the latest — and arguably strongest — move by European lawmakers to reshape the EU-China relationship ahead of two critical summits this year that will feature discussions on trade tensions, technology and competition practices.
POLITICO guides you through the main questions surrounding the new 5G security measures.
Huaweis Richard Yu delivers a presentation in Munich on September 19, 2019 | Christof Stache/AFP via Getty Images
Wheres the Huawei ban?
The U.S. campaign to convince allies of the security risks linked to Chinese vendors largely boiled down to one question: To ban or not to ban Huawei.
If thats the question, Europes new toolbox is likely to disappoint advocates of a full-blown ban. The document does not point fingers at Huawei or single out China, and it doesnt impose binding restrictions.
However, it does give European lawmakers a how-to guide if they want to proceed with bans and restrictions.
The suggested rules ask national governments to assess the risks associated with vendors, taking into account elements like: Where its headquarters is based; what surveillance rules the firm is subject to; and whether it can challenge governments requests for espionage through “democratic checks and balances.”
Those elements are, without a doubt, targeted at China and its vendors, Huawei and the smaller rival ZTE.
“There is zero discrimination. Im very honest when Im saying this,” said European Internal Markets Commissioner Thierry Breton, refusing to mention Chinese vendors by name.
Huawei is likely to face bans across Europe similar to the ones announced in the U.K.
But, he added, “Im not naïve. I know that for some it will be easier to comply than for others.”
Exclusions are advised, and they go beyond core parts
The new measures range from imposing “audits” and regulatory checks on the telecom industrys cybersecurity policies to having EU countries peer-review their policies.
But the attention-grabbing part is that the document calls on capitals to apply new “restrictions — including necessary exclusions” for high-risk vendors in “critical or sensitive” parts of 5G networks.
Those parts include “core” networks that form the backbone of the internet, critical network management services and parts of the core networks that manage data traffic to base stations and antennas.
This means Huawei is likely to face bans across Europe similar to the ones announced in the U.K., limiting its sales to “radio access networks” (RAN) that consist of antennas and base stations, and additional restrictions on whether it can provide software and maintenance services, too.
The question is which national governments are interested in walking down this path.
A billboard advertises 4G and 5G technology in Londons Waterloo Station | Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images
“It is not me. It is the member states who have the abilities and the tools to act. The new thing is they all voted together on what is the risk and what to do to mitigate the risk,” Breton said. He said the risks “cannot be ignored by anyone.”
Toolbox squares circle of national laws
The EUs new toolbox squares the circle of measures taken by some European governments in the past months, and invites the others to follow suit.
In France, legislators finalized a new law last summer that grants the office of the president far-reaching powers to intervene in telecom contracts and block procurement of high-risk vendors. It also includes limits on Huawei equipment from being used in critical and sensitive parts of the network, including imposing geographical restrictions.
The Dutch government released new requirements in December.
Much like the new U.K. rules, the Dutch rules imply that Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE could face partial blocks in the country in coming years.
In Germany, regulators in October published a draft set of new requirements that raise the bar for operators and vendors on cybersecurity. But the requirements — known as the “security catalogue” — drew criticism from security hawks who dubbed it “toothless.”
The German coalition government is still at odds over how to handle Huawei specifically. Chancellor Angela Merkels Conservative CDU-CSU party on Tuesday postponed a decision on criteria for the rollout of the 5G network by two weeks to February 11, two persons with knowledge of the decision told POLITICO.
“Were not rushing. Were talking about two or three years for the application” — European Commissioner Thierry Breton
The EU toolbox collects these different measures, calling for short-term action to regulate the telecom sectors cybersecurity policies.
Europes response will come in steps
The toolbox caps a year of EU legislating on 5G security, but its effectiveness will depend on capitals actions in coming months and years.
The Commission said a lot of the measures apply to so-called standalone 5G. Todays 5G connections are in fact 4G internet connections with 5G antennas to speed things up. Standalone 5G is expected in two to three years time and would run on new software applications and hardware equipment.
“Were not rushing. Were talking about two or three years for the application,” Breton said. “By 2023-2024 you will have a lot of antennas with smart applications and a lot of computing power … When itll be a full 5G deployment, standalone, in three to five years, everybody will have done it with this tool,” he said.
In the first stage, national governments are asked to report back on “concrete and measurable steps” to implement the measures by end-April, and report back to the EUs cooperation group of cybersecurity authorities by end-June.
Telecom companies would have to take into account these new measures when theyre making business deals and rolling out 5G in coming years.
Toolbox takes into account telco industrys balance sheets
For over a year now, operators have warned that banning Huawei would mean huge extra costs for rolling out 5G.
Samsungs Galaxy Note10+ 5G smartphone is played for sale in Seoul on January 8, 2020 | Jung Yeon-Je/AFP via Getty Images
The Chinese vendor has longstanding business deals with European operators and already worked with many on testing 5G connections. If governments decide against Huawei, that would mean those investments are lost.
The EUs main telecom lobby association ETNO in a statement asked governments to “avoid disproportionate actions that negatively impact the investment climate, and which could in turn harm both Europes competitiveness.”
Another reason to keep Huawei in the game is competition: Huaweis equipment is not always cheaper than that of its competitors, the Swedish Ericsson and Finnish Nokia, but operators fear cutting the Chinese vendor from bidding processes would mean the other two wont price their gear as competitively.
The majority of European countries are likely to allow Huawei to continue to compete for things like mobile network antennas and other, less sensitive network functions. The Dutch government already came out saying it would allow this, Belgium is likely to do so as well, as is Germany and others.
As for Huawei, keeping market access to so-called radio access networks in Europe wouldRead More – Source
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