China threatens Germany with retaliation if Huawei banned

Bloomberg

China’s ambassador threatened Germany with retaliation if it excludes Huawei Technologies Co as a supplier of 5G wireless equipment, citing the millions of vehicles German carmakers sell in China.
Resistance against Huawei is growing among lawmakers in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s governing coalition, who have challenged her China policy with a bill that would impose a broad ban on “untrustworthy” 5G vendors.
“If Germany were to take a decision that leads to Huawei’s exclusion from the German market, there will be consequences,” Ambassador Wu Ken said at a Handelsblatt event.
“The Chinese government will not stand idly by.”
President Donald Trump’s administration has sought to enlist US allies in squeezing out Huawei as a 5G supplier. A lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission this month marked Huawei’s latest attempt to fight US sanctions and curbs that threaten the world’s largest networking business.
While the German legislation doesn’t explicitly name Huawei, it’s tailored to the Chinese company and comes after months of debate about 5G security.
China’s Huawei Technologies Co has repeatedly rejected allegations of its equipment’s potential for espionage and sabotage.
The Chinese ambassador to the European nation Wu Ken said Huawei has no legal obligation to provide data to the Chinese government, then reminded the audience that German manufacturers account for a quarter of the 28 million cars sold in China last year.
“Could we say one day that these German cars are no longer safe because we’re in a position to manufacture our own cars?” he said in a video on newspaper Handelsblatt’s website. “No. That is pure protectionism,” he added.

Merkel faces revolt as allies seek full ban on Huawei
Bloomberg

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is facing a potential revolt in parliament by lawmakers seeking to override her China policy and effectively ban equipment supplier Huawei Technologies Co from the country’s fifth-generation wireless network.
A bill drafted by lawmakers in Merkel’s ruling coalition stipulates that German authorities should be able to exclude “untrustworthy” 5G equipment vendors from “core as well as peripheral networks.” That goes beyond previous calls that sought to ban the firm from the more sensitive core network alone.
The effort in the Bundestag, Germany’s lower house of parliament, is a major challenge to Merkel’s attempts at balancing security considerations over 5G with Germany’s delicate economic ties with China. Hawks in her government have warned that Huawei’s ties to the government in Beijing pose a security risk.