As expert from the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies Mikhail Belyaev has told Sputnik, the Czech Republic and Poland’s support for the United States on the issue of Huawei could result in the reduction of Chinese investments and restrictions on their companies’ activities in China.
On Monday, 14 January China’s Global Times called for tough measures to be taken in response to the arrest of Huawei employee Wang Weijing on suspicion of espionage.
The Czech government has obliged 160 leading companies that use Huawei and ZTE technologies to test their information systems for possible national security risks. Additionally, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš admitted on Sunday via Prague Prima TV that the government had been completely surprised by the security department’s suggestion to have the country’s key companies refrain from using the technology of these Chinese companies.
“The Czech Republic is a member of the ‘16+1 Cooperation’. Last year, President Xi Jinping visited the Czech Republic. It’s important to know that Chinese leaders’ visits to a Central and Eastern European country alone are very rare”.
“I think, on the one hand, such conclusions by the Czech Security and Intelligence Department may have been affected by certain NATO countries, especially the United States, the Czech Republic is a NATO member after all. As for economic benefits, although the Czech Republic has historically surpassed China in science and technology development, the current situation is just the opposite. The Czech Republic is in great need of Chinese technology. The technologies that it receives from such Western European countries as the UK, France and Germany may not be enough; moreover, the United States cannot provide the Czech Republic with the relevant technology.
