In the end, Australia still "kicked out" Huawei and ZTE from 5G construction

Australia has banned Huawei from supplying equipment for its planned 5G broadband network, the Chinese telecoms operator said on Thursday.

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Huawei's Australian branch said on Twitter that this was a "very disappointing result" for consumers. According to Huawei's Twitter, ZTE was also banned from providing 5G network equipment in Australia.

Huawei, the world's largest maker of telecommunications network equipment and the third-largest smartphone supplier, had promised Canberra full oversight of 5G network equipment, including base stations, towers and wireless transmission equipment.

The role of Huawei and Chinese companies in Australia's 5G network has been the subject of controversy in recent months.

After Huawei was listed as a supplier threatening national security by the United States, similar concerns were also reported in Australia, an ally of the United States. In June this year, Huawei sent an open letter to the Australian government to refute the accusations of security concerns.

However, Australian media said that the Australian Parliament is already considering whether to allow Huawei to participate in the construction of Australia's 5G network.

A few days ago, foreign media reported that the Australian government may reconsider its partnership with Huawei and may allow Huawei to participate in the 5G bidding, but will limit the type of technology, that is, bidding for non-sensitive parts of the 5G network.

The Sydney Morning Herald last month quoted Jeremy Mitchell, Huawei's director of corporate public affairs for Australia and New Zealand, as saying that banning Huawei as a supplier of Australia's telecommunications infrastructure would be "ridiculous" and a move that would "devastate" the industry.

"I think the idea that 'banning Huawei will ensure Australia's 5G network is secure' is ridiculous because this is not a supplier, it's not even a country," Mitchell said.

Mitchell pointed to Nokia's involvement in the National Broadband Network as a major supplier, noting that the NBN's equipment was "made in a factory in Shanghai, owned by the Chinese government." Nokia has a controlling stake in its joint venture in China, while other major telecoms suppliers such as Ericsson also have factories in China.

“So from a supply chain perspective, China is baked into the equation. Australia’s 5G network will be made in China, with or without Huawei,” he said.

Mitchell said that in terms of mitigating the risk, there are only two countries in the world that actually ban Huawei, the United States and Australia. "You ban the largest wireless network supplier in this country, I don't care if it's Huawei, but if you take out Nokia or Ericsson... what effect would that have on the industry? It would completely destroy it."

Analysts also pointed out that Australian mobile operators Optus, Vodafone and TPG are all interested in Huawei's equipment. If these operators and the wider economy are forced to abandon Huawei, they will have to pay more money to deploy next-generation infrastructure, resulting in additional cost budgets.

The Wall Street Journal once said that if Huawei is "kicked out" of 5G construction, Australia will become the country among the US allies that has taken the most extensive measures to prevent Huawei from participating in 5G network construction on the grounds of national security concerns. Now, Australia has confirmed its identity as the US's "thug".

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