Replacing the existing Huawei equipment used in Romania’s telecom sector (with equipment from another producer) would cost Romania EUR 2.6 billion and “the GDP will lose at least EUR 6.7 billion,” said Huawei Romania CEO George Zhang in an interview for Adevarul daily.

The interview comes after Romania and the United States signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the development of 5G networks, a document never disclosed, which reportedly sets firm security and transparency criteria for those who want a license to develop 5G applications.

Zhang stressed he was not aware of the content of the Memorandum. He also did not explain why would Romania have to replace existing Huawei equipment if it decided to work with other equipment providers for the development of applications based on 5G technology.

Because Huawei has been in Romania for 17 years, “we already have an important role here,” the Huawei Romania CEO said. “Most of the current equipment used in 4G networks is built by Huawei, so a negative Government decision on the company would have a major impact even on existing networks,” Zhang added.

The company came in Romania 17 years ago and created 7,100 workplaces out of which 6,800 are Romanian employees. It is not easy to say "ok, Huawei, go away with your 5G technology," because this would significantly affect the existing network and stop the development of 5G networks, he argued.

editor@romania-insider.com

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