Spain opposes EU-wide Huawei and ZTE telecoms ban

TL;DR

• Spain opposed the European Commission's proposal for a mandatory EU-wide ban on Huawei and ZTE telecoms equipment during talks on the new European Cybersecurity Act.
• Spain wants member states to keep national authority to decide which suppliers pose structural security risks.
• The Commission wants current recommendations turned into obligations, including a three-year deadline to replace Chinese vendors in mobile networks and an extension to fixed and satellite networks.

Spain opposed the European Commission's proposal for a general and mandatory ban on Huawei and ZTE equipment in European telecoms networks during negotiations on the new European Cybersecurity Act. The Spanish government said national governments, not the Commission, should retain authority to decide which suppliers present structural risks to national security.

Spain's position was stated by Digital Transformation and Civil Service Minister Óscar López. According to ministerial sources cited by Mobile World Live, Spain supports supplier classification based on technical, objective, proportionate and viable criteria that provide legal certainty, rather than supranational political bans. The report also said Spain has not used its 2020 cybersecurity law to restrict Huawei, despite having the legal basis to do so.

The European Commission wants existing recommendations to become binding obligations, with a three-year deadline to replace Chinese vendors in mobile networks and a broader ban covering fixed and satellite networks. The report said the UK, France, Sweden, Portugal and the Baltic states have already banned Huawei and ZTE equipment in both core and radio access network infrastructure, while Italy, Belgium and Germany are applying similar limits. Spain remains among the few large European countries that resist classifying Huawei and ZTE as high-risk vendors.

According to Expansión, Spain's position is backed by operators including Telefónica, Orange and Deutsche Telekom. The operators are concerned that forced replacement of Chinese equipment would create high costs and major technical difficulties. Industry data cited in the report said the replacement process could cost tens of billions of euros across Europe.

Related questions

• What changes does the European Commission want in the new European Cybersecurity Act?
• Which European countries have already restricted Huawei and ZTE telecoms equipment?
• Why do operators such as Telefónica, Orange and Deutsche Telekom oppose a forced replacement timeline?