Editor’s Note: Every Wednesday, WPR Newsletter and Engagement Editor Benjamin Wilhelm curates the week’s top news and expert analysis on China.
The “tech war” between the United States and China has shifted to Europe, where the United Kingdom this week announced, in an abrupt reversal, that it would ban the use of equipment from Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei in its high-speed wireless network. The British government’s decision is a major victory for the Trump administration, which has been campaigning to steer countries away from China as they develop their 5G infrastructure. Europe has been one of Huawei’s key markets as it established itself as the world’s biggest supplier of telecom equipment.
The British ban on Huawei will take effect in January, and the government will give 5G carriers until the end of 2027 to remove existing Huawei equipment. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government faced increasing pressure to take a harder line against Huawei after Washington imposed new restrictions on the firm in May that disrupted its access to critical American technology and software. The Trump administration says Huawei is a national security threat because it could access sensitive information and turn it over to the Chinese government.