Technology & Science
EU Unveils Mandatory 36-Month Phase-Out of Huawei-Linked Gear Across 18 Critical Sectors
Brussels released draft Cybersecurity Act revisions on 21 Jan 2026 that would compel all EU states to remove equipment from any supplier officially deemed "high-risk"—notably Huawei and ZTE—shifting earlier voluntary guidance to a legally binding phase-out.
Focusing Facts
- Mobile operators must replace key components from listed high-risk vendors within 36 months of the list’s publication, according to the draft.
- The proposal spans 18 critical sectors—including telecoms, electricity grids, water systems, cloud, semiconductors, drones—triggering restrictions only after a formal risk assessment launched by the Commission or three member states.
- Industry group Connect Europe warns compliance could add “billions of euros” in extra costs for operators.
Context
Europe has tried to ring-fence strategic technology before: in 1949 the Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (CoCom) embargoed Western electronics to the Soviet bloc, betting that control of supply chains would translate into security leverage. Today's draft echoes that logic, recasting 2020’s non-binding 5G “toolbox” into hard law amid a broader post-COVID, post-Ukraine trend toward techno-sovereignty and de-risking from both China and the United States. Whether the EU can afford the bill or enforce unity—member states balked at the cost of replacing Huawei 5G kit as recently as 2024—will determine if this is a watershed like GDPR (which re-shaped global data norms) or a stalled directive like the 2013 attempt to forge a single telecom market. On a 100-year horizon, the move signals Europe’s re-entry into great-power industrial strategy: controlling nodes of the digital infrastructure much as it once controlled coal and steel, gambling that security and autonomy outweigh short-term expense and potential trade retaliation.
Perspectives
International/European mainstream outlets
Reuters, CNBC, Mint — Describe the EU’s draft Cybersecurity Act as a necessary move to safeguard critical infrastructure and strengthen European technological sovereignty by removing high-risk Chinese suppliers. Coverage largely mirrors EU officials’ national-security framing while giving limited scrutiny to evidence of actual espionage, aligning with broader Western geopolitical competition against China.
Chinese corporate perspective
Huawei’s public response — Contends the proposal breaches EU legal principles and WTO rules by discriminating against suppliers on the basis of nationality rather than technical facts. Huawei portrays the plan as protectionism, sidestepping long-standing concerns about state influence over Chinese firms and seeking to preserve its European market share.
Telecom and tech industry trade press
Mobile World Live, iTnews — Focus on the operational impact, stressing that a forced three-year phase-out will cost operators billions and threaten Europe’s connectivity goals. Trade outlets amplify carrier lobby cost estimates and may underplay security arguments, reflecting the commercial interests of their readership.