- The UK must suffer “painful public retaliation” for its decision to ban Huawei from its 5G network, Chinese state media said on Wednesday.
- A spokeswoman for China’s Foreign Ministry said the UK decision “would come at a cost” to Britain, describing the country as “the deception of the United States.”
- The Boris Johnson government has repeatedly clashed with Beijing in recent weeks after offering 3 million Hong Kong citizens the right to live and work in the UK.
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The UK must suffer “public and painful” retaliation for its decision to ban Huawei from its 5G network, Chinese state media said on Wednesday, and a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry accused Britain of becoming “the deception of the United States. “
The Boris Johnson government said on Tuesday that the United Kingdom will impose a ban on the purchase of all new Huawei 5G infrastructure by December 31, and that all existing equipment created by the Chinese firm will be phased out in 2027.
UK Culture Secretary Dowden told members of Parliament that the UK “can no longer guarantee the security” of its agreement with Huawei after the Donald Trump government imposed significant sanctions on the telecommunications company.
The Johnson government has scrapped its deal with Huawei to build the UK 5G amid mounting opposition to the deal by MPs in the prime minister’s own conservative party, as well as pressure from the White House.
The UK insists that the decision to undo its agreement with Huawei was not designed to provoke China or harm London’s relationship with Beijing, and Johnson’s spokesman said on Tuesday that the UK wanted a “positive and constructive relationship” .
However, China’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Liu Xiaoming, said on Wednesday morning that the move was “disappointing and incorrect.”
Xiaoming tweeted: “A disappointing and misguided UK decision on #Huawei. It has become questionable whether the UK can provide an open, fair and non-discriminatory business environment for companies from other countries.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said during a press conference on Wednesday that Britain’s decision “would come at a cost” to the country, adding that the UK had become “the deception of U.S”.
Beijing has suggested that UK companies with operations in China, which include BP, Jaguar Land Rover and Glaxosmithkline, will receive more severe treatment in light of Huawei’s withdrawal from UK networks.
Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said “it is decisive proof of the direction the UK market would go after Brexit and whether UK companies in China will receive an open, fair and non-discriminatory “. The Times of London reports.
An editorial in the Chinese state media suggested that Beijing “would retaliate” against the United Kingdom, which it described as a “weak link.”
“China needs to retaliate against the UK, otherwise we would not be too easy to intimidate? Such retaliation should be public and painful for the UK,” said an editorial in the Chinese state-run news organization The Global Times. .
However, they added that “it is not necessary to turn it into a confrontation between China and the United Kingdom because” the United Kingdom is not the United States, nor Australia, nor Canada. It’s a relative ‘weak link’ in the Five Eyes. “
“In the long run, the UK has no reason to turn against China, and the Hong Kong problem is fading.”
The United States had previously urged the United Kingdom to cut ties with Huawei, warning that a deal with the company would give China a back door for western intelligence sharing. The issue was a point of contention, as President Trump once said he hung up on Johnson in an “apoplectic” phone call.
The U.S. sanctions were designed to prevent Huawei from using U.S.-produced equipment to manufacture semiconductors, raising concerns in London that the company would use alternative technology with an additional security risk.
Johnson’s official spokesman said Tuesday that the sanctions imposed on Huawei this year by the Trump administration were a “game changer” that meant the UK had no choice but to change course.
The decision will delay the launch of 5G across the UK for at least two years, Dowden told MPs on Tuesday, while creating additional costs of up to £ 2 billion, or $ 2.5 billion.
The dispute is the latest in a series of clashes between the two countries, and China threatens retaliation for Boris Johnson’s promise to offer up to 3 million Hong Kong citizens the right to live in the United Kingdom.
