Is Indian Telecom Depending Too Much On China?


The National Security Council claims that Huawei and ZTE have links to Programme 863 of the Chinese government, which was administered by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Programme863 was set up in 1986, as part of China’s seventh five-year plan.

Not only does India look into the matter, but Australia’s government has disqualified Huawei from building the country’s broadband network, a decision taken immediately after a visit from US President Barack Obama. The US itself has blocked off Huawei from crucial telecom infrastructural contracts.

Indian cellular operators have lobbied hard to ensure that Chinese equipment is available to them, since the cost of their machinery directly affects their bottom line. They have also lobbied the government to classify Huawei as a ‘domestic manufacturer’ in order to get away restrictions that later might come into force.

Apart from this, India cannot merely impose trade restrictions without a clear national security case. Even though telecom imports are not targeted at US companies, possibly they would evaluate it for security aspects. The government cannot afford to ignore security reasons while taking this decision. Currently, the consent that is being built is to beef up India’s inadequate facilities for testing the equipment for spyware and vulnerability that is quite pathetic.

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