Huawei 'part of the solution'

NEW DELHI - A senior executive of telecom giant Huawei on Wednesday called the firm "part of the solution, not the problem", days after it was blocked from bidding on a multibillion communications project in Australia because of cyber security concerns.

"It is a legitimate concern for business communities, governments, and individuals to address this security issue (and) to jointly develop capacities and solutions. (But) in that regard, we're part of the solution," Yao Weimin, vice-president of Huawei Global, told a news briefing in New Delhi.

Huawei earlier said it was willing to make concessions to win contracts from the $38 billion National Broadband Network, which aims to connect 93 percent of Aussie homes and workplaces with optical fiber and ultra-fast broadband by 2020.

Australia has banned the firm from bidding, citing concerns about cyber attacks that can be traced to China.

Jeremy Mitchell, director for corporate affairs at Huawei (Australia, New Zealand & South Pacific), has said it is important not to "paint China with one brush". "Yes, we are Chinese in origin, but we are privately owned, we are a global company," he said.

Meanwhile, Yao, in India, refrained from directly commenting on the issue, saying only that Huawei serves 90 percent of the world's top 50 telecom operators and that "the fact speaks for itself".

"There are other concerns that are beyond business itself. There are other issues at play in certain areas of the world, which I will not comment on here," he said.

Huawei has been blocked from deals in the United States due to similar allegations. Concerns about allowing Chinese telecom companies into its market have also been on the rise in India, the host of a summit of leaders from the BRICS nations.

Huawei started operations in India in the late 1990s, and has some 2,500 Indian employees at its Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore) office alone. "We're working together and serving all the telecom players in the Indian market. There's a track record for Huawei's technology, solutions, services, and most importantly, our commitment to industry development, economic growth, and society," Yao said.

The reporter can be reached at huyinan@chinadaily.com.cn