Huawei gear ‘top notch,’ says new CEO of Canadian telco BCE

The new head of Canada’s biggest telecommunications firm said Huawei Technologies’ equipment is “top notch” and he would like the option of working with the Chinese company as it rolls out a next-generation 5G network.

“They’ve been a great partner,” Mirko Bibic, who took over as chief executive officer of Montreal-based BCE on Monday, said in an interview on BNN Bloomberg TV.

Bibic’s comments come as the Canadian government faces a decision over whether to allow Huawei to play a bigger role in developing the 5G broadband network amid security concerns and as tensions between Canada and China remain stretched over the arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou.

Meng was arrested in December of 2018 on a US extradition request by Canadian authorities at Vancouver’s airport. In the following months, China imprisoned two Canadians on spying allegations, put another two on death row, and halted nearly C$5 billion (US$3.8 billion) worth of Canadian agricultural imports.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said a decision on whether to allow Huawei access to Canada’s next-generation network will not be a political one. Meng is set to appear in court on January 20 for the formal start of extradition hearings.

European governments, including Britain, are weighing restrictions on Huawei over fears that its systems could be accessed by Chinese intelligence to spy on other countries or disrupt communications, something the company denies. Australia has already banned the Shenzhen-based company from bidding on 5G contracts while the US is US pressing its allies to do the same. The Trump administration blacklisted the company in May, labelling it a threat to US national security.