ISLAMABAD, October 21 (online): On Tuesday, it was announced that Sweden would ban Huawei and ZTE from its upcoming 5G auction and demand equipment used in networks be phased out by 2025. The move is not a surprise given the exceptional decline of relations between Stockholm and Beijing over the past several years, not least because U.S. pressure on the continent to exclude the firm has accelerated owing to a backlash over the COVID-19.
However, the case stands out in contrast to other countries on the continent. Why? Because Sweden’s own telecommunications firm, Ericsson, is a participant in China’s 5G market and has contracts with China Telecom and China Unicom.