5G development and deployment: the latest news until November 2020

The Clean Network Strategy: Europe is split

The Clean Network strategy, which was invented by Trump to fight China's technological
invasion caused controversial reactions of European countries. The rationale behind the strategy
is that the US considers the 5G network “unclean” because it bears too many Chinese
characteristics. The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed the program will protect the
US network infrastructure from " malign interference" by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)
and Chinese companies. The United States has decided that China is spying on the equipment it
supplies to telecoms, although there is no such official evidence. It is simply implied that when
the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) orders Huawei to eavesdrop, Huawei obeys. The Clean
Network Initiative proposes an end-to-end communication connection that doesn't use
transmission, management, calculation or storage from unreliable equipment from unreliable IT
providers such as Huawei and ZTE, which are required to comply with the CCP directives. The
vision for a Clean Network goes far beyond the topic of 5G. It affects everything – cloud
technology, applications, sales, everything – from end to end. That is why many more Chinese
companies are affected – Alibaba, Baidu, China Mobile, China Telecom and Tencent. There is
more fuss about Huawei because it is the largest supplier of telecommunications equipment in
the world and because it sells more smartphones than Apple. Currently, the initiative is supported
by about 40 countries in total worldwide.
However, it is not certain the plan will sell in Europe at all. “The success of Washington's " Clean
Network" campaign to promote China-free data infrastructure around the world depends on
European cooperation. But the US shouldn't count on it”, political scientist Xuewu Gu told
Deutsche Welle (DW). It looks like the German government has already decided internally not to
rule out Huawei. Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, and Telefonica, the three major operators in
Germany, have never stopped communication with Huawei behind closed doors. In July 2020,
the British government said the country's 5G network must be purged of Huawei equipment by
2027, and new purchases of Huawei 5G network equipment will be banned starting in
2021. However, the 7-year limit and the half-year procurement period are in fact an
encouragement for UK operators to secretly stock up enough Huawei 5G equipment by
December 31, 2020. France, Spain, and the Netherlands leave the door open and Ireland has still
allowed Huawei to be a 5G option. Dublin has never publicly invited Huawei to build 5G, but
defends the 5G collaboration between its two major telecommunications operators, Vodafone
and Eir, with Huawei. Although Ericsson still occupies the core network, the higher-capacity
the access network is still open to the Chinese technology giant.

Among other European states, the Czechs support the American plan since the Clean Network
initiative was born at the US-EU talks held in Prague. Slovakia and Cyprus have already
confirmed they would join, too.
Participants in the third Western Balkan Digital Summit that took place online from 26 to 28
October 2020 and was hosted by the government of Albania, highlighted the importance of
digital transformation and connectivity for the countries in the region, especially in the context of
the coronavirus pandemic. The closing ministerial meeting on 2 November is expected to adopt a
Memorandum of Understanding on regional interoperability and trust services in the Western
Balkan region and a Memorandum of Understanding on a 5G roadmap for digital transformation
in the Western Balkans. The US has already got the consent of Northern Macedonia and Kosovo,
Romania and Albania about the strategy. The Serbian president signed the anti-Chinese
agreement in Washington, but 10 days later Huawei opened its Center for Innovation and
Development in Belgrade. “As a world-class enterprise, Huawei is not only an equipment
supplier but also a provider of knowledge and technology, making it one of Serbia's largest, best
and most important partners”, prime minister Brnabic said, according to the Chinese embassy in
Serbia. Bulgaria also joined the initiative and the U.S. embassy in Sofia called the signing
“historic”. Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov pointed that the European Union had
already provided guidelines on 5G network security and that they should be built on fair
competition and transparency. However, the government’s statement did not mention any
specific vendors or what the document would mean for Bulgarian telecoms operators that would
develop the 5G networks, Reuters notes.
Obviously European states are split in their opinion and the apathy toward the "zero-China"
network illustrates a strong concern that once Pompeo's Clean Network becomes a reality, the
world's cyberspace will be divided in half, one dominated by China and the other by the US.
Why is Europe rebelling against the Clean Network?
Firstly, because of ideological reasons. For years, European leaders have criticised Russia and
China for isolating themselves from the global network and for being behind a firewall. Now the
Americans are forcing them to do the same – to put up a wall in front of China and to isolate
themselves. For Europe, the Clean Network is the end of the "global" network. Secondly, there is
also another technological argument: the need to change equipment will lead to losses for
telecoms and delay the launch of 5G networks. Even if they have the goodwill and money to
clear the network, telecoms in Europe can hardly do this quickly because Ericsson does not have
the capacity of the Chinese and Nokia and Samsung has other problems. This means the launch
will be probably next year, but 5G will not be installed everywhere.
Compiled by Media 21 Foundation from:

http://www.crossdisplay.bg/crossdisplay.php?mil=VgpXDk5BDlQMEhFFBhYIBUcKQlsHDxJ
QCg9SEQpGX1INEgVGQVtXDlMSX0VZXFtDUwAAUAYFBFcbAhEJBA9HBlZEDVAXC
UdYBApGD1tGWhw
https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-europe-will-not-follow-the-us-china-free-5g-strategy/a-
54948684
https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/short_news/digital-transformation-and-connectivity-
key-for-western-balkans/
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bulgaria-usa-5g-idUSKBN2782X9

The United States has unblocked the supply of chips to Huawei under one particular
condition
A breath of fresh air for Huawei's management – the United States is allowing more and more
chipset manufacturers to supply components to the Chinese company, as long as they are not
used for its 5G business. According to a Financial Times (FT) publication, the easing of
restrictions could be a lifeline for Huawei, as the sanctions imposed threatened the company's
survival. Huawei's smartphone business has been hit hard by the sanctions but now has a chance
to recover. Applications for a license to supply Huawei components are approved if the
manufacturer proves that technology does not support 5G.One of the executives of an Asian
semiconductor company says mobile chips are not a problem, adding that the company is
optimistic about getting a license to continue doing business with Huawei.
Huawei fell victim of the trade war between the United States and China. In May 2020 the
the company was included into the so-called " Blacklist" and was effectively barred from doing
business with American companies or companies that use American technology without a special
license from the United States. Within a few months, the United States banned the supply of
chipsets and technology to Huawei and the ban was detrimental to the entire semiconductor
industry since suppliers face billions of dollars in losses.
Recently, however, more and more companies are receiving licenses to deal with the Chinese
giant. Samsung Display received " green light" to supply Huawei's OLED panels, and before that
Intel confirmed that it had received approval to supply chips. Japan-based Sony and China-
owned OmniVision, which is headquartered in California, are also said to have been approved to
supply CMOS image sensors used in smartphone cameras. More than 300 companies, including
Samsung, Qualcomm, and MediaTek have applied for a license that will allow them to do
business with Huawei, and are expected to receive approval in the coming weeks or months.
Compiled by Media 21 Foundation from https://technews.bg/article-128680.html

Bulgaria: Balchik municipality is the first to pass a decision against the installation of a 5G

network on its territory

Balchik Municipality is the first in Bulgaria to officially ban the construction of a 5G network. A
one-year moratorium on such facilities was imposed at a session of the local parliament on
September 30 2020. The reason is the petition of 183 local residents who do not want the
network rollout due to health concerns. They insist on research be done before the technology is
introduced.
" There should be a state opinion on the issue and it should be explained what the benefits of the
5G network are for the population and the economy because people are confused and don't
know whom to trust. We look at things soberly and don't believe in conspiracy theories” citizens
claim. They hope Bulgaria, or at least Europe will complete the necessary research within one
year.
5G safety tests have actually been done across the country. This year, the International
Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, based in Germany, examined in detail the
risks of 5G networks and the frequencies at which they operate and concluded they are safe. In
the UK, Ofcom also conducted its own research on the already established 5G network and also
did not identify any danger for human health. The fact is that in Bulgaria similar to other
European countries there are no widespread and well-funded information campaigns for the new
generation of networks. Only mobile operators tried to inform the public through the media, even
before the pandemic. Then it became clear that COVID-19 would delay the introduction of 5G
network in the country.
In addition to Balchik petition there are also official inquiries from various municipalities
whether such cells have already been built in Bulgaria. A few months ago the mayors of the
towns of Ruse and Sandanski asked mobile operators to provide information about this. The
answer was negative. Deputy Speaker of Parliament Emil Hristov (GERB) requested official
analyses of the network's security. In Brussels MEP Ivo Hristov (BSP) organised a whole
discussion in the European Parliament.
Compiled by Media 21 Foundation from https://clubz.bg/104733-
balchik_pryv_othvyrli_igoto_na_5g_s_reshenie_na_obshtinskiq_syvet

Joint initiative on counteracting the spread of disinformation related to 5G networks and
the need of public awareness raising activities
Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland and Portugal, Slovakia, Sweden sent a letter to the European

Union to create a communication strategy that provides reliable information related to EMF and
radio equipment including 5G to the Member States and European Citizens.
The EU member states express their concerns regarding the escalating disinformation around the
effects of exposure to electromagnetic field (EMF) and fifth generation (5G) technology cellular
networks and condemnation of the recent acts of vandalism on critical telecommunication
infrastructure. They stress that the roll-out of 5G network infrastructure requires “appropriate
planning, significant financial outlays and investments as well as complex administrative
proceedings e.g. frequency awarding procedures.” On the other hand, the fears and worries of
those people that are opposed to introducing 5G for reasons relating to EMF concerns have to be
taken seriously. In this context, a broad and inclusive debate creating trust among citizens is
needed. Member states point to the great role of science and demand “continued scientific
research on risks related to human health, spread of trusted information among the EU citizens as
well as engagement in awareness-raising campaigns.”
Compiled by Media 21 Foundation from: https://www.euractiv.com/wp-
content/uploads/sites/2/2020/10/Letter-EMF5G-disinformation.pdf