The Chinese group Huawei is heavily invested in 5G. - Nicolas Asfouri / AFP

France's decision to severely restrict the operating authorizations of partner operators of the Huawei group has displeased China. Beijing on Monday called on Paris to guarantee a "fair and non-discriminatory" environment for its businesses.

The National Agency for Security of Computer Systems (Anssi) has announced that it will limit the operating licenses of 5G, the fifth generation of mobile Internet, to French operators SFR (Altice) to a maximum of eight years. Bouygues Telecom, which already use equipment from Huawei, a Chinese private telecommunications giant.

🔴EXCLUSIVE - Guillaume Poupard announces that Huawei is subject to refusal and limited authorizations between 3 and 8 years. A heated debate, especially with Bouygues Telecom and SFR who will have to dismantle equipment 👇 https://t.co/PIs2UZ0Gef

- Les Echos (@LesEchos) July 6, 2020

"What I can say is that there will not be a total ban. Operators who do not use Huawei, we encourage them not to go because it is a bit the natural sense of things. Those who already use it, we issue authorizations whose duration varies between three and eight years ", said Guillaume Poupard, the director general of Anssi, charged by the government with examining this file, in an interview with the newspaper Les Echos .

"The decisions are ready," said Poupard, confirming information from AFP on Tuesday that these decisions are just waiting to be signed by the executive.

Three suppliers for 5G

Only three telecom equipment manufacturers, European Nokia and Ericsson and Chinese Huawei, are able to supply the equipment for the future 5G networks, the future mobile telecommunications system.

"There will be refusals," said Poupard to Les Echos , however excluding that these refusals concern Nokia and Ericsson, and thus indicating in hollow that only Huawei is concerned.

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  • Smartphone
  • Telephony
  • 5G
  • China
  • Huawei
  • High-Tech