According to Bloomberg, Germany and Spain are resisting a plan proposed by the European Commission to ban telecommunications equipment from Huawei and ZTE across Europe. The Commission aims to upgrade existing security guidelines into binding regulations, requiring member states’ operators to phase out equipment from these Chinese firms in critical 5G infrastructure, citing cybersecurity risks as the primary reason. However, both Germany and Spain maintain that individual countries should retain full sovereignty over their own telecom networks, while expressing concerns about rising costs and potential trade retaliation from China.
Germany relies heavily on Huawei, with a significant portion of its 5G radio access networks utilizing Huawei equipment. To address this, Germany has adopted a phased approach: operators must remove Huawei and ZTE components from their 5G core networks by the end of 2026, while restrictions on access and transmission network management systems have been extended until 2029. Spain has taken a similarly cautious stance, refraining from imposing a total ban and instead limiting Huawei’s presence solely to non-critical infrastructure. This joint opposition underscores deep divisions within the EU regarding implementation costs, timelines, and jurisdictional authority.