US President Donald Trump nudges India to bar China's Huawei from 5G roll-out

The United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday subtly nudged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in New Delhi to keep China's telecom giant Huawei Technologies Company Limited out of the 5G mobile network roll-out in India.

Notwithstanding pressure from the US, the Modi government had, on December 30, 2019, announced its decision to let all network equipment makers, including the Huawei Technologies Co Ltd., to participate in the 5G trial.

The government later clarified that it had so far only allowed Huawei Technologies Co Ltd in the trial for the superfast network and the decision on the participation of any provider in the actual roll-out would be taken later.

“We discussed the importance of a secure 5G wireless network and the need for this emerging technology to be a tool for freedom, progress, prosperity, not to do anything with which it could be even conceived as a conduit for suppression and censorship (sic),” Trump said, as he and Modi addressed media-persons after a meeting at the Hyderabad House.

The Trump administration last year banned Huawei’s products in the United States market citing security concerns, particularly the possibility of China using its telecom equipment company for surveillance and espionage activities in America. It also barred US companies from supplying software and components to any entity based in China.

Not only Huawei, but the Chinese Government also dismissed this speculation.

Trump's entourage for his two-day tour to New Delhi included Ajit Pai, chairman of the US Federal Communications Commission, who had a meeting with Anshu Prakash, Telecom Secretary of the Government of India, on Monday. They discussed roll-out of the 5G network.

Huawei has already been barred from participating in 5G network in Australia and Japan. while Canada and New Zealand are also contemplating similar moves.

Beijing, however, has been asking New Delhi not to buckle under pressure from the US and to take an “independent decision” on involving the Huawei Technologies Company Limited of China in the roll-out in India.

During his visit to New Delhi in October, US Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross, warned that India might expose itself to security risks, if it allowed use of Huawei’s 5G telecom equipment in India. The issue was also discussed when External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had a meeting with Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, on the sideline of the second India-America 2+2 dialogue in Washington D.C.

“Hope Chinese companies continue to enjoy open, transparent business environment & (and) level playing field in India for win-win cooperation,” China's ambassador to India, Sun Weidong, had posted on Twitter after Modi Government decided against barring Huawei from the trial for the next-generation mobile network roll-out.