Canada will ban Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei from its 5G network, while requiring Canadian companies that have already installed their equipment to remove it.."Let me be very clear, we will always protect the safety and security of Canadians and we'll take any actions necessary to safeguard our telecommunication infrastructure," said François-Philippe Champagne, minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development during a press conference Thursday.."This is the right decision and we are pleased to announce it today because it will secure our network for generations to come," he said..The decision comes more than three years after the Liberal government first announced it would launch a review of companies that would be permitted to service 5G networks. Then-public safety minister Ralph Goodale had promised to make decision on Huawei before the 2019 federal election..Security experts have been sounding the alarm on Huawei for years. They have argued that the company's participation in Canada's 5G networks could allow it to collect details on how Canadians use internet-connected devices, and that the Chinese government could force the company to hand over that information..The other four members of the Five Eyes alliance, which is made up of English-speaking nations which have an agreement to share security information, had already banned Huawei from their 5G networks..When asked by a reporter why it took Canada much longer than other Five Eyes countries to ban Huawei, Champagne responded "this has never been a race."."This is about making the right decision, because what we're seeing today, this is about a framework that will protect our most critical infrastructure," he said..When responding to a question about the Chinese government potentially retaliating in response to the ban of Huawei, Champagne didn't indicate that was a factor in the government's decision.."Let me be clear, this is about Canada, this is about our national security, this is about our telecom infrastructure," he said..Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino said the decision marks "a new era in safeguarding our telecommunications industry.""Canada is a country where people can innovate and start new businesses, and leverage new technologies in 5G and beyond. But we also need to safeguard against the risks which can be exploited within those networks," he said, adding that the new legislation would be coming in addition to the Huawei ban.Mendicino said the over three-year long examination into Huawei was conducted in a "meticulous" manner, and the decision was made "on the strength of the advice that we get from our national security partners.".China’s National Intelligence Law decrees that Chinese organizations and citizens must support and cooperate with state intelligence work. But Huawei has repeatedly claimed it is an independent company that does not engage in espionage..The opposition Conservatives have consistently pressed the Liberals to block Huawei from building Canada's 5G infrastructure. On Twitter, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Michael Chong reacted to the news by saying it "shouldn't have taken more than 3 years" for the Liberals to make the decision..Conservative leadership candidate Jean Charest concurred with Chong on Twitter, saying that while he commended the Liberal government's decision, it "took too long."."As Prime Minister, I will order a national security review of all strategic infrastructure projects to protect Canada’s national security," he said..Conservative leadership race frontrunner Pierre Poilievre said on Twitter that the Liberals were "finally" banning Huawei after "years of delay."."Today would be a good day for Jean Charest to reveal how much Huawei paid him and what for," he said.
