Germany Slams the Door on Huawei & China in 6G Race – Geopolitical Tech War Escalates

Berlin draws a hard line in the sand—Chinese tech giants get zero access to next-gen networks.

Subheader: Digital Sovereignty or Protectionism?

Germany’s 6G blueprint explicitly excludes Huawei and other Chinese vendors, citing 'unacceptable security risks.' The move mirrors Washington’s playbook—but with EU regulatory muscle behind it.

Subheader: The Ripple Effect

Telecom stocks wobble as supply chain headaches loom. Meanwhile, Beijing’s $1.4T tech juggernaut faces yet another Western roadblock. (Bonus finance jab: Guess who’s still buying German bonds though?)

Closing provocation: When infrastructure becomes ideology, who pays the real price—taxpayers or tech titans?

Germany’s digital sovereignty and national security concerns

Merz, in a business conference in Berlin on Thursday, emphasized that Chinese components have no place in next-generation networks. “We won’t allow any components from China in the 6G network,” the German Chancellor said.

Germany took a firm stance to exclude Huawei Technologies and other Chinese suppliers from its future communication networks due to concerns about potential security vulnerabilities linked to Huawei equipment. German authorities fear that the Chinese government’s influence over the tech manufacturer potentially creates an opening for espionage within critical telecoms infrastructure, a fear that has been echoed by other Western countries.

By banning Huawei from 6G networks, Germany aims to eliminate future risks.

Merz said he’d have a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron at an upcoming summit on digital sovereignty. “We’ll discuss with industry what we can do, not only to make ourselves independent from China, but also for example independent from the USA, independent from the big tech companies.”

Major operators like Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, and Telefonica will need to adapt new strategies and find alternative suppliers, primarily European technology firms.

Europe pushes out Chinese tech

Germany’s decision to exclude Huawei from its 6G networks mirrors similar moves by other European countries as the bloc has been intensifying efforts to phase out Huawei and ZTE equipment from member state networks amid shared concerns about Chinese state influence and cybersecurity threats.

Germany first made moves to remove Huawei equipment from Core network components in 2024. Now, the country has made a stance to totally exclude Huawei and other Chinese suppliers from its future 6G network.

Finland and other EU countries have recently announced plans or taken steps to ban Huawei for future network development.

Beyond Europe, the US and several other countries have long restricted Huawei’s role in critical telecom projects, citing national security.

Germany’s decision is expected to influence supply chains and investment decisions in the telecom market, potentially increasing costs and slowing deployment timelines during the transition away from Huawei.

However, Merz notes that total independence from Chinese technology is not possible. “We can’t do that”. He also cautioned business executives to understand the risks of doing business with China, adding that Germany will not always be able to protect them.

Get seen where it counts. Advertise in Cryptopolitan Research and reach crypto’s sharpest investors and builders.