The British government allows Huawei to continue to provide 5g network equipment for the country, but as expected, it will be excluded from the core network.
After a review, the UK government said it would take additional security measures to exclude so-called "high-risk providers" from the part of the telecommunications network that is critical to security.
The decision came after a meeting between British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the National Security Council, which set out the security requirements that so-called "high-risk suppliers" must comply with.
Without naming Huawei, the UK government said in a statement that so-called "high-risk suppliers" would be excluded from all security related and critical networks. Including the core functions of the network, as well as sensitive locations such as nuclear facilities and military bases.
Huawei's participation in non-sensitive parts of the network is limited to no more than 35% of the "minority" access networks. The function of access network is to connect terminal and equipment with base station.
Johnson's decision to allow Huawei to continue to participate in the country's 5g deployment could spark a dispute with the US. The latter urged the UK and other countries to follow suit by banning the supplier (participation in 5g projects) on the grounds of national security.
Victor Zhang, Huawei's vice president, said after the statement that the company was "comfortable with the British government's decision," adding that it would help put the country's 5g deployment on track.
"This evidence-based decision will bring more advanced, secure and cost-effective telecommunications infrastructure to the UK to meet future development requirements. This gives the UK access to the world's leading technology while ensuring a competitive market. " He said.
Prior to the decision, the UK launched a process called "Telecom supply chain assessment" in July 2019, which focuses on ensuring the security of 5g networks.
Johnson said earlier this month that Huawei would be allowed to continue operating in the UK despite increasing pressure from the US. He called on the supplier's critics to identify alternative suppliers to provide the same level of 5g equipment.
