Germany will not ban Chinese telecoms giant Huawei from establishing the build of its national 5G networks, ignoring calls from the U.S. prohibits the company over national security concerns.
A spokesperson for Germany’s Interior Ministry confirmed in a phone call Wednesday that the decision had been made on Tuesday.
The move is a blow to the U.S., which has been pressuring its allies to exclude Huawei from 5G infrastructure, claiming its presence in the networks would enable Chinese espionage. Countries including Australia and New Zealand have already banned the company from their domestic networks.
Under Chinese law, organizations can be forced to hand over data to the state if requested to do so, but Huawei has repeatedly denied claims that its presence in 5G networks would act as a back door for China.