Canada to ban Huawei from 5G networks: sources

Canada is announcing Thursday that it’s banning China’s Huawei Technologies and ZET, another Chinese company, from participating in the country’s 5G wireless networks, CTV News has confirmed.

Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne and Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino will make the announcement at 4:15 p.m. in Ottawa.

The federal government has long faced pressure to ban the Chinese telecom giant from its fifth-generation telecommunications infrastructure, over security concerns. The Liberals have promised for years an announcement on issue was coming, citing the need to follow process.

But many observers suspected the major policy decision was delayed in part due to China’s detention of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, which was largely seen as retaliation for the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Canada.

Spavor and Kovrig were released in September 2021 after the extradition against Meng was dropped. At that time, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he’d be sharing Canada’s decision on what to do with Huawei “in the coming weeks.”

Canada is the only remaining member of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance to have not yet banned or restricted Huawei from partaking in the implementation of the network.