Babiš, Pompeo sign 5G declaration to find trustworthy suppliers

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have remotely signed a declaration committing to find reliable, trustworthy suppliers for 5G mobile networks.

The declaration aims to protect networks from intrusion and manipulation, and to ensure the protection of citizens’ privacy and rights, the Czech government office said.

Czech and US intelligence services have warned that to have Chinese companies such as Huawei and ZTE roll out national infrastructure such as the 5G network would represent a security threat.

Babiš and Pompeo spoke by phone Tuesday since a conference 5G networks at the Prague National Museum had to be postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. Pompeo was to be the main speaker.

The auction of 5G frequencies in the Czech Republic was initially scheduled for the second half of 2019 but was postponed due to an objection by the European Commission over competition concerns.