German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces a possible parliamentary rebellion by lawmakers trying to circumvent her China strategy and effectively ban Huawei Technologies from the fifth-generation wireless network of the country.
A bill introduced by legislators in the ruling coalition of Merkel stipulates that German authorities should be able to exclude "untrustworthy" suppliers of 5G equipment from "main and peripheral networks." It goes beyond previous calls seeking to bar the Chinese the company alone from the more important core network.
A major challenge to Merkel's attempts to balance security considerations over 5G with Germany's delicate economic ties to China is the effort in the Bundestag, Germany's lower house of parliament.
Security Concerns
Hawks in her administration, including German intelligence agencies and the Ministry of the Interior cautioned that Huawei's relations with the Beijing government poses a security risk.
Although the draft does not explicitly name Huawei, it is tailored to the Chinese company and follows months of 5G security debate. Huawei has repeatedly denied allegations of possible spying and sabotage.
Bloomberg News' draft legislation states that Merkel's government's security guidelines, which include a certification process and a statement of confidence, do not go far enough.
It is also necessary to take into account the political and legal structures in the country of origin of a supplier, the draft say in a a clear allusion to China.
As policymakers tackle sensitive portions of a final draft, Merkel's Christian Democratic Union-led coalition and the Social Democratic Party highlight the momentum building against the Shenzhen-based technology giant by stringent security standards set by lawmakers. Last month, at a party convention, CDU lawmakers approved a motion asking for further restrictions.
Germany Chooses Huawei
Labeling 5G technology as the "digital nervous system" of Germany, lawmakers said Europe already had two firms offering an alternative to "state-subsidized" rivals posing a threat - a reference to Nokia from Finland and Ericsson from Sweden.
"Therefore it is in Germany's own interest to focus on European approaches concerning the extension of the 5G network and to develop European technologies" said the document.
Excluding Huawei from the peripheral network - and not just the more sensitive fundamentals - would create headaches for the telecommunications companies in Germany who warned that banning the vendor would delay the 5G buildout in the county and make it more costly.
Earlier this week, Telefonica SA's German unit, which operates the country's second-largest wireless network said it picked Huawei and Nokia on Wednesday to play an equal role in providing its 5G network upgrade.
