Germany’s interior ministry has proposed forcing local carriers to restrict their use of equipment made by Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE, Reuters reported, citing a government official.
According to the report, the interior ministry is seeking to impose these new restrictions on 5G networks after an in-depth review highlighted the European country’s reliance on the two Chinese vendors.
“Such an approach will have a negative impact on the digital transformation in Germany, inhibit innovation and significantly increase construction and operating costs for network operators,” Huawei Germany said in a statement.
The government source added that Germany’s interior ministry has designed a staggered approach to try to limit disruption, by requiring local carriers to remove all critical components from Chinese vendors in their 5G core networks by 2026.
German carriers should also reduce the share of Chinese components in their RAN and transport networks by October 1, 2026, to a maximum of 25%, the official added.
German operator Deutsche Telekom noted that this deadline set by the government was unrealistic, while rival operator Telefonica Deutschland indicated its intent to explore legal action against the potential decision and seek damages.
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Last month, the German government said that the potential high costs of removing components from Huawei from the country’s 5G networks will not be a barrier if it is in the best interests of national security.
Germany’s Interior Minister Nancy Faeser had said that if there is a high risk of having components from Chinese vendors Huawei Technologies and ZTE in the local telecom networks, the argument that it will be expensive to replace these components is not an excuse not to move forward with that plan.
“We will prohibit components if they pose a serious security risk,” Faeser said. “The network operators will have to act and dismantle the components.”
Germany originally avoided the implementation of a full ban of Huawei 5G equipment amid U.S. pressure to cut Chinese infrastructure providers. Instead, the government decided that all components that were deemed critical IT infrastructure needed to be certified by the authorities.
A spokesperson for the interior ministry had previously confirmed to Reuters that as part of its broader review of its relationship with China, the German government is also reevaluating its telecom suppliers. “The main change is that these strict checks for potential security risks now also apply to the existing components in telecommunications networks,” said the spokesperson.