Victor Zhang, Huawei.
Britain is likely to give the thumbs up to tech titan Huawei to help install the UK’s 5G network.
The decision flies in the face of pressure from America for Boris Johnson to deny the Chinese company access to the platform.
Sir Mark Lyall Grant, a former national security adviser to Theresa May, said the UK could mitigate against potential threats.
Mr Lyall Grant told the Observer:
“This has been gone into now by three different administrations.
“I think the outcome is quite likely to be the same – that the intelligence agencies are expressing confidence that they can sufficiently mitigate any potential security threat to allow Huawei to continue to provide at least the non-core telecommunications equipment for 5G rollout.
“The government has developed an oversight mechanism which they are confident will work.
“Combine that with the fact that Huawei has more advanced technology than the alternatives, I think it is relatively likely that Boris Johnson will come to the same conclusion.”
Washington has constantly warned it “would be madness” to use Huawei technology.
It added that the US would have to “re-assess” sharing intelligence with Britain if Huawei was in place.
Victor Zhang, a senior Huawei executive, , said there was simply “no justification” for banning the company on cyber security grounds.
“After looking at the facts, we hope the government agrees – so that our customers can keep the UK’s 5G roll-out on track and meet the prime minister’s promise of gigabit connectivity for all.
“Giving Huawei the go-ahead to continue supplying equipment will mean telecoms companies have access to the best technology and the breadth of suppliers they need to build secure, resilient and reliable networks.”
