Huawei has had a bit of a tough time when it has come to the uptake of its cellular technology and equipment outside of China in recent times. Back in August, Australia banned Huawei and ZTE from providing 5G technology to telecommunications carriers due to national security concerns shortly after the use of tech from the two companies was banned within the US Government. Plus, within the last week, it has been reported that the US Government has been trying to persuade its allies to dump Huawei from telecommunications equipment shortlists.
Now, New Zealand has become the latest country to put Huawei's hopes of rolling out its telco equipment in that country on ice. Subsequent to a bid by the manufacturer to supply 5G equipment to Spark New Zealand, the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) notified the telco that "a significant network security risk was identified" but declined to provide any further comment given the ongoing regulatory process.
Unsurprisingly, Huawei said in a statement that it intended to "actively address any concerns and work together to find a way forward" while Geng Shuan, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said:
"We hope the New Zealand government provides a fair competition environment for Chinese companies operating in New Zealand, and does more to benefit bilateral mutual trust and cooperation."
While there is an opportunity for Spark to work with the GCSB to deal with the identified risks associated with the country's first proposed 5G network rollout, it has given other players in the market a chance to consider their respective positions and the potential impact upon competition.
Source: Reuters
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