Huawei has expressed concern over proposed Australian legislation prohibiting them from working on communication networks simply because they’re Chinese.
The new legislation has been designed to protect Australian communication networks from cyber-attacks.
Addressing a parliamentary committee, Huawei’s chairmen John Lord said Australia could be disadvantaged if it continues to exclude companies from sensitive projects based on their nationality alone.
Last year, Huawei Australia’s motion to work on the national broadband network was rejected on ‘security grounds.’
Australia is not the only country closely scrutinising Huawei. A Gulf News report claims the US House Intelligence Committee has been quizzing executives of Huawei and ZTE corp. to determine if the Chinese companies pose a threat to US national security. The probe has so far lasted more than a year.
Huawei has continually denied it poses any threat. Last week it pledged never to partake in spying in an effort to alleviate concerns that could halt its growth in the US and other markets.
In Australia, Huawei has been contracted by telcos Optus and Vodafone to deploy their new 4G networks, contributing largely to Australia’s telecommunication infrastructure.
Huawei is China’s second largest private company and has branches in over 140 countries.
