PARIS (Reuters) - France will not follow the United States and exclude China's Huawei from its next-generation 5G network, but will have the power to vet all equipment makers for any potential security threat, a minister said on Monday.
French telecoms regulator Arcep kicked off the long-awaited sale of 5G spectrum on Thursday, ending months of intense debate between the country's telecoms operators and authorities on how to best deploy the new ultra-fast mobile internet technology.
"We do not target one equipment maker," Junior Economy Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher told BFM Business television on Monday. "There is no exclusion."
"There are three equipment makers active in France. Huawei has a 25% market share, there is also Nokia (HE:NOKIA) and Ericsson (BS:ERICAs). Samsung (KS:005930) is not active yet in France but is interested by 5G," said Pannier-Runacher.
"The government will not exclude anyone. We are not following the position of the United States," she added. "We will proceed on a case by case basis
Telecoms operators will have to seek permission from the prime minister for their 5G network projects, and receive clearance based on national security considerations.