Huawei and ZTE, Excluded by the US and Europe, Accelerate Layout in Vietnam and Win Multiple 5G Orders
Multiple informed sources revealed that after the United States and many countries banned Huawei and ZTE from entering their national telecommunications networks on the grounds of "unacceptable national security risks," these two Chinese telecommunications equipment giants have rapidly secured multiple 5G equipment contracts in Vietnam this year. With the U.S. imposing tariffs on Vietnamese goods and the warming of Sino-Vietnamese relations, Huawei and ZTE's presence in the Vietnamese market has further expanded, drawing attention from Western officials.
Reuters exclusive report pointed out that public procurement information shows that although Vietnam's 5G core network is mainly supplied by Swedish Ericsson, Finnish Nokia, and American Qualcomm, Huawei and ZTE have recently won bids for small-scale 5G projects with state-owned operators. A consortium including Huawei won a contract worth $23 million in April; the total amount of contracts won by ZTE in recent times also exceeded $20 million.
All these contracts were awarded after the U.S. announced or implemented tariffs on Vietnamese goods. Reuters could not confirm whether there was a direct link between the two, but several diplomatic sources said that the relevant developments had been discussed in internal meetings of Western officials recently. U.S. officials warned that the introduction of Chinese equipment into Vietnam may affect the trust of the outside world in its network and weaken Vietnam's opportunities to obtain advanced American technology.
The U.S. has long urged Vietnam to exclude Chinese contractors from key digital infrastructure; Sweden and some European countries have also imposed restrictions on Huawei and ZTE's participation in their 5G construction. Due to being listed by the U.S. as "unacceptable national security risks," the two companies are prohibited from entering the U.S. telecommunications network.
Ericsson declined to comment on the contracts won by Chinese companies, but stated it would "fully support its Vietnamese customers."
The Swedish Foreign Ministry responded to questions about the Vietnamese 5G contracts by saying: "Ensuring a secure and trustworthy network is crucial for all countries, especially in the context where critical social functions are increasingly digitalized."
Source: rfi
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1850094303655948/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.