Huawei will take part in 5G trials in the huge Indian market, a major boost for the Chinese firm as it battles US sanctions (STEFAN WERMUTH)
<p>New Delhi (AFP) – New Delhi has said it will let Chinese telecoms giant Huawei take part in trials for the rollout of 5G services in the huge Indian market, giving the firm a major boost as it battles US sanctions.</p><p>The US government has banned Huawei from working with US firms, calling it a security threat because of alleged close ties to the Chinese government. The company denies the accusation.</p><p>Washington, which also banned US companies from selling equipment to Huawei, had lobbied hard for India to freeze Huawei out of its 5G communications network.</p><p>"We have taken the decision to give 5G spectrum for trial to all the players," India’s telecom minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said late Monday.</p><p>He acknowledged that Huawei, the global leader in telecom networking equipment and a major player in India’s smartphone market, would be among the companies taking part in the trials expected to start next month.</p><p>With 451 million monthly active mobile internet users, India is second behind China in the world internet users rankings, according to the Internet and Mobile Association of India.</p><p>The Indian move comes after European telecommunications operators including Norway’s Telenor and Sweden’s Telia passed over Huawei as a supplier for their 5G networks as intelligence agencies warned against working with the company.</p><p>Australia and Japan have also taken steps to block or restrict the firm’s participation in their 5G networks. </p><p>Britain has yet to take a decision on Huawei but the company has provisionally secured 5G deals in countries such as Germany.</p><p>India’s announcement came as Huawei said "survival" was its top priority after announcing 2019 sales were expected to fall short of projections as a result of US sanctions.</p><p>Revenue rose this year to a record 850 billion yuan ($121 billion), slightly lower-than forecast that chairman Eric Xu blamed on the US ban.</p><p></p>

Disclaimer: Validity of the above story is for 7 Days from original date of publishing. Source: AFP.