Sweden’s telecom giant Telia will be excluding Huawei from all its infrastructure in Lithuania. The company will be replacing its 4G telecom equipment from Huawei and will not use it for 5G networks.
It is reported that the development of excluding Huawei stems from geopolitical situations. The US has been actively involved in eliminating the use of Huawei equipment in telecom sectors across the world, by influencing countries and companies to replace their networks infrastructure.
Most European nations, including Sweden have restricted the role of Chinese suppliers in 5G networks. This is largely due to rising concerns about security.
Dan Stromberg, head of Telia’s operation in Denmark, Lithuania and Estonia, told the media, “The reason we are abandoning Huawei is the geopolitical situation. We felt that now was the right time to do it, because Ericsson is a good strategic partner.”
Although China has repeatedly denied any allegations regarding Huawei’s security threat for economies across the world, the US is determined to widen the gap. It is reported that Lithuanian counter-intelligence agencies in February announced that Huawei equipment should not be allowed in critical infrastructure.
“We were very satisfied with the quality and support of Huawei’s equipment, so there is nothing to complain about. But it is as it is,” Stromberg said. In October, Sweden banned telecoms equipment from Huawei and ZTE in its 5G network. ZTE is also a Chinese company focused on telecommunication and information technology. Even the UK has urged its telecom companies to not install new Huawei 5G kit after September 2021, media reports said.