Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will not block China's Huawei from participating in the construction of 5G networks in Brazil, the Sao Paulo State newspaper reported on January 19, citing government sources. Huawei will be able to bid for 5G network construction in Brazil in June.
Mr Bolsonaro reportedly considered banning Huawei from building the country's 5G network on the grounds that it would "share data with the Chinese government". American officials have also said Brazil would be willing to join its so-called "clean net" initiative to exclude Chinese companies. In December, Bolsonaro planned a decree to exclude Huawei from Brazil's 5G networks, but faced strong opposition from the country's political and business communities, according to Brazilian news website G1. Brazil's two main telecom companies said they had used Huawei technology for more than a decade and had never experienced any data breaches or thefts. Brazil's federal government has also presented no evidence against Huawei.
Reuters reported on Monday that Bolsonaro's position has changed since U.S. President Donald Trump's defeat in the presidential election. The Sao Paulo State newspaper said the defeat of his ally Trump in the presidential election had led Bolsonaro to reverse his stance on blocking Huawei's participation in the construction of 5G networks in the country. Most telecoms companies in Brazil have used Huawei products since they set up their 3G and 4G networks. A ban on Huawei could cost Brazil billions of dollars in additional costs, the paper said, citing sources in the presidential palace and the telecoms sector.
China is Brazil's largest trading partner and Huawei is more cost competitive, the Sao Paulo State newspaper said. Brazilian Vice President Moran said any company that respects data sovereignty and privacy requirements will be able to provide 5G technology equipment in Brazil. Folha de Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest newspaper by circulation, published an exclusive interview with Chinese Ambassador to Brazil Yang Wanming on Monday. With regard to Huawei, Yang said that Brazil's National Association for the Construction of Telecommunications and Information Technology Infrastructure estimated that if Huawei is excluded from 5G construction, Brazil will have to pay 100 billion reais (about 19 billion U.S. dollars) in additional costs, delay local 5G network development for three years and reduce 2.2 million jobs. Huawei has also announced that it is willing to sign agreements with any partner countries without "back door", and is willing to set up cyber security evaluation centers in any country. The Chinese government strictly follows the principles of data security and protection. It has not and will not ask Chinese companies to provide overseas data to the Chinese government in violation of other countries' laws.