{"id":23004,"date":"2020-12-02T18:08:29","date_gmt":"2020-12-02T18:08:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=23004"},"modified":"2021-10-28T23:11:25","modified_gmt":"2021-10-28T23:11:25","slug":"how-the-clean-network-alliance-of-democracies-turned-the-tide-on-huawei-in-5g","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/how-the-clean-network-alliance-of-democracies-turned-the-tide-on-huawei-in-5g\/","title":{"rendered":"How the Clean Network Alliance of Democracies Turned the Tide on Huawei in 5G"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

How the Clean Network Alliance of Democracies Turned the Tide on Huawei in 5G<\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

A three article\u00a0series containing seven parts\u00a0on The Clean Network
\nHow the Clean Network Alliance of Democracies…<\/strong>\u00a0>> Next<\/strong><\/a> >> Last<\/strong><\/a>
\n<\/em>by\u00a0Michael Mink<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Part I<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/b>Uphill 5G Battle<\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\"Secretary
Secretary Mike Pompeo announces Clean Path<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On April 29, 2020, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo walked up to the podium to announce the Clean Path initiative to protect 5G network traffic entering U.S. diplomatic facilities. By that time, the world was convinced it was too late to prevent 5G vendors sponsored by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from dominating the next generation of global telecommunications. Washington officials of both parties feared that Beijing could control\u2014and even deny the U.S. and its allies access to\u2014the 5G networks that make global commerce and the projection of military power possible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The U.S. gave increasingly dire warnings about the risks of reliance on Chinese technologies, but the steady march toward acceptance of Huawei seemed irresistible. The United Kingdom was committed to granting Huawei a role in building parts of the country\u2019s new 5G network. The British Finance Minister, Philip Hammond, even said that while networks needed to be secure, they also had to be competitive. The government believed the best way to do that was by utilizing some of Huawei\u2019s technology.<\/p>\n

Huawei warned that its ban would require removing existing network equipment which would cost hundreds of millions, or even billions, of dollars and delay building a new 5G by as much as 18 months.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another strong NATO ally, Germany, Europe’s economic giant and largest telecommunication market, resisted full support for the Clean Network. Chancellor Angela Merkel even supported Huawei publicly. <\/span>\u201cHuawei\u2019s technology is <\/span><\/i>deeply embedded<\/span><\/i><\/a> in Germany’s existing telecom infrastructure,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Politico.eu wrote. <\/span>\u201cMajor German telecoms have worked closely with Huawei to accelerate building of the country\u2019s 5G network.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The German government had for many months disagreed on how to handle the issue amid fears that it could delay 5G networks and cause trade tensions with Beijing. To further pressure Germany, the Chinese ambassador to Germany even went so far as to make overt threats that the Chinese car market would be off limits to German automakers if Germany banned Huawei from its 5G networks.<\/span><\/p>\n

In January 2020, the UK\u2019s decision to allow Huawei into its 5G network sparked tensions between London and the Trump administration. It looked like the Chinese tech vendor was going to run the table in Europe. White House representatives warned it would be <\/span>\u201cnothing short of madness\u201d<\/span><\/i> to include the Chinese company in telecoms infrastructure, and that intelligence-sharing would be at risk if Britain went ahead.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Pelosi:
Nancy Pelosi: “Allowing the Sinification of 5G would be to choose autocracy over democracy” Photo: DPA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At the 2020 Munich Security Conference in February, Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned European countries they will \u201c<\/span>choose autocracy over democracy<\/span><\/i>\u201d if they let Huawei take part in rolling out 5G technology, in a sign of the bipartisan US political pressure over the Chinese company. She added it would be the \u201c<\/span>most insidious form of aggression<\/span><\/i>\u201d if 5G communications were to come under the control of an \u201c<\/span>anti-democratic government.<\/span><\/i>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

A few days later at a <\/span>press conference in London<\/span><\/a>, Huawei’s president of carrier business Ryan Ding boasted, <\/span>“We have 91 commercial 5G contracts worldwide, including 47 from Europe.”<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\"Schumer
Schumer urges UK to revisit Huawei decision<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In March, Senate Minority <\/span>Leader Chuck Schumer<\/span><\/a> (D-NY) led a bipartisan group of Senators in urging Parliament to reconsider the Johnson government\u2019s decision to allow Huawei to supply some of the United Kingdom\u2019s 5G telecommunications infrastructure. Saying, <\/span>\u201cGiven the significant security, privacy, and economic threats posed by Huawei, we strongly urge the United Kingdom to revisit its recent decision, take steps to mitigate the risks of Huawei, and work in close partnership with the U.S. on such efforts going forward.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

U.S. State Department Steps Up<\/b><\/p>\n

The rise of Huawei was the fulfillment of decades of careful planning. Supported by the CCP, Huawei benefitted from state protection against foreign competitors, billions in funding from the Chinese government, as well as forced technology transfers and well documented instances of outright technology theft. The reason was clear and perhaps best described by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo: \u201c<\/span>Huawei was a trojan horse for Chinese intelligence and the CCP surveillance-state.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Huawei leadership, and the CCP, spent years maneuvering the company into this position. Huawei was founded in 1987 by Ren Zhengfei, a veteran of the People\u2019s Liberation Army\u2019s engineering corps. Many of the company\u2019s crucial first contracts were with the Chinese army. As Huawei grew, it benefitted from both state support and stolen technology.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1996, the Chinese government banned competition from foreign suppliers, and there is compelling evidence that Huawei received a massive $30 billion line of credit from the China Development Bank, along with other state-backed financing.<\/span> This gave the company a lock on the Chinese domestic market and enabled it to fuel rapid international expansion by offering deep discounts. Forced technology transfers from foreign companies, and several cases of technology theft also drove the company\u2019s rise, including the well-documented <\/span>theft of router software from Cisco<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Clean Path initiative announced that day in April was the first of several Clean Network strategic chess moves designed by Under Secretary of State Keith Krach, a Silicon Valley veteran who was <\/span>uniquely qualified<\/span><\/a> for his mission of developing a global economic security strategy and operationalizing its 5G plan. At the time of the announcement, Huawei\u2019s leadership position and momentum seemed unbeatable.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"According
According to Joe Kaeser, President and CEO of Siemens AG, \u201cUnder Secretary of State Krach\u2019s experience of building the Ariba Network with $7 trillion per year of B2B eCommerce and the DocuSign Global Trust Network with 600,000 businesses and nearly 1B consumers provided the perfect background for leading the Clean Network charge.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

However, Krach had a proven track record of building high-performance teams and market-leading companies by constructing global networks. His transformational companies had <\/span>disrupted everything<\/span><\/a> from industrial robotics, design engineering, global commerce, and even the way people sign.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Krach: <\/b>2018 Life & News Transformational Leader of the Year<\/b><\/a>\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

The Initiative that Turned the Tide<\/b><\/p>\n

\"The
The Clean Network<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Krach had recruited a team of a dozen results-oriented executives and partnered them up with a diverse set of State Department career officers. The team was convinced the stakes were so high for 5G that this was a battle the U.S. simply could not lose.<\/span><\/p>\n

They knew that as China\u2019s only company with a worldwide brand, Huawei could give the CCP command of the 5G technologies that underpin commerce and communications for the entire world\u2014the central nervous system of the 21st-century economy. Through Huawei, Beijing was poised to extend its reach to developing nations, collect massive amounts of data to feed its AI machine, and access intellectual property to transfer to their state-owned enterprises and national champions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Krach borrowed an old play from previous successes, forming a network of partners <\/span>based on trust<\/i><\/b> and rooted in internationally accepted standards. It was this formula that resulted in the Clean Network\u2014 an alliance of democracies, companies, and civil society, with a comprehensive approach to addressing long-term threats to data privacy, security, human rights, and trusted collaboration. <\/span>It represents the execution of a multi-year, comprehensive enduring strategy, based on democratic values.<\/span>
\nIt was designed to be a <\/span>bi-partisan<\/u><\/span>, enduring strategy in the epic battle of freedom versus authoritarianism.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bipartisan Support from the Beginning<\/b><\/p>\n


\nDuring Krach\u2019s Senate confirmation hearing, he stated, <\/span>\u201cIt is comforting to know that both sides of the aisle understand that the Chinese Communist Party is playing the long game, and they are playing for keeps\u2014a four-dimensional game of economic, military, diplomatic, and cultural chess. The CCP has little respect for human rights, intellectual property, rule of law, the planet, or the sovereignty of other nations.\u201d<\/span><\/i> Respect for these values would turn out to be the Trust Principles of the Clean Network.<\/span><\/p>\n

Senator Rob Portman stated, <\/span>\u201cThe job he has been nominated for is really vital to our country right now. He could not be taking the post at a more crucial time for our country. There is no doubt in my mind that <\/span><\/i>Keith is up to this task<\/span><\/i><\/a>…\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a natural leader. I know he will serve this nation with distinction.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n