Canada announced that it plans to ban the use of China’s Huawei Technologies and ZTE 5G gear to protect national security, joining the rest of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network.
“We intend to exclude Huawei and ZTE from our 5G networks,” Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne told reporters in Ottawa.
“Providers who already have this equipment installed will be required to cease its use and remove it under the plans we’re announcing today,” he added.
The other “Four Eyes” namesly UK, US, Australia and New Zealand, have already put restrictions on the firms.
The announcement by Canada’s announcement came as an expected move, as its allies had already barred Huawei and ZTE from their own high-speed networks.
Mr Champagne said the decision came after “a full review by our security agencies and consultation with our closest allies”, as he was peaking to reporters in the Canadian capital of Ottawa,
“Let me be very clear: We will always protect the safety and security of Canadians and will take any actions necessary to safeguard our telecommunication infrastructure,” he added.
“In a 5G world, at a time where we rely more and more in our daily lives [on] our network, this is the right decision.”
5G is the next upgrade to mobile internet networks, offering much faster data download and upload speeds. It also allows more devices to simultaneously access the internet.
It comes as data usage is soaring, as the popularity of video and music streaming grows. This is pushing governments and mobile phone network operators to improve their telecommunications infrastructures.
Canada first announced a review of Huawei equipment in September 2018.
Some of China’s biggest technology and telecoms firms have been targeted in recent years by governments in the US and other Western nations over national security concerns.
In November, US President Joe Biden signed legislation that stops companies judged to be security threats from receiving new telecoms equipment licences in the country.
It means equipment from Huawei, ZTE and three other Chinese companies are banned for use in US telecoms networks.
