Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has signed a bill that essentially bans China’s Huawei from being involved in the country’s 5G networks amid national security concerns.
The bill was approved by Prime Minister Florin Citu in April, and the parliament subsequently passed the bill.
The law says that telecommunications companies may not be considered in Romania due to “risks, threats or vulnerabilities to national security,” according to Euronews. It also requires that companies wanting to supply technologies and equipment for Romania’s 5G network request the opinion of the Supreme Defense Council, which is chaired by President Iohannis.
According to Reuters, the bill stems from a 2019 U.S.-Romania memorandum under which the two governments had stated that as part of a risk-based security approach, careful and complete evaluation of 5G vendors is necessary, with those controlled by a foreign government and lacking a transparent ownership structure having been ruled out.
Romania was a staunch ally of Washington even before joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 2004. Washington regards Huawei as an arm of China’s Communist Party’s global surveillance machinery.
The Romanian Senate recently passed a draft law initiated by the government regarding the 5G security regulations, which could remove Huawei from the list of suppliers of hardware and software used in Romanian 5G networks, giving a blow to China.
