UK forms D10 Alliance against Chinese 5G, includes India, Australia and South Korea along with G7 countries

London: The British government has proposed a D10 Alliance against Chinese 5G, given the consistent pressure from the United States and the ever-increasing ire against China, because of the Coronavirus crisis and Hong Kong. India, Australia and South Korea are proposed to be included in the D10 Alliance, along with the G7 countries. As per information, discussions on this alliance will be held during the G7 group meeting, scheduled to be held in the next month. The development draws attention as the United Kingdom is the leading country in awarding 5G implementation contract to the Chinese company Huawei.

The leading British daily, The Times, informed that discussions regarding the D10 Alliance, proposed by the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, have already started with the recommended alliance partners. The office of Prime Minister Johnson (PMO) has confirmed the report. The spokesman of the British PMO said that the United Kingdom believes that new companies also should be a part of the 5G marketplace. We are working on this aspect and talks have been initiated with all the allies, including the United States.

Chinese company Huawei is known as the leading company in the 5G technology sector. This company, having close links with the Chinese government and the military, has started strong moves to spread the 5G network in most of the leading countries of the world. The Chinese government has forced many countries in the Asian and African continent to award 5G implementation contracts to Huawei, using its financial and trade might. The Chinese government is pressurising even the European countries to permit Huawei to implements 5G technology in those countries.

At the beginning of the year, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had decided to permit Huawei to implement 5G technology in the United Kingdom. US President Donald Trump and other US leaders had heavily criticised the decision taken by the British Prime Minister. Since the last few months, the United States is trying to pressurise the British government over the 5G issue, in various ways. The United States has even warned that the decision of the British Prime Minister could hamper the proposed US-UK trade agreement. At the beginning of this month, US President Donald Trump announced harsher sanctions against the Chinese company Huawei. After this announcement by the United States, the United Kingdom announced an independent inquiry into the Chinese company to reassess the earlier decision. This inquiry is being conducted by senior British officials and the intelligence agencies. Although the report of the investigation is still not published, the British intelligence agencies have warned that against the background of the sanctions imposed by the United States, the United Kingdom can’t implement 5G technology. Therefore, finally, the United Kingdom has started exploring options for Chinese 5G technology.

The D10 Alliance announcement by British Prime Minister Johnson is a part of the same effort. This alliance will include India, South Korea and Australia along with the members of the G7 group. The Johnson government informed that the first significant meeting regarding the front would be held during the G7 summit, to be held in the United States in the next month. The G7 group has the United States and the United Kingdom along with Italy, Germany, Japan, Canada and France as members.

The companies leading in the 5G technology sectors are Ericsson and Nokia from Europe, NTT from Japan, Samsung from South Korea and Verizon from the United States, along with Huawei and ZTE from China. There is intense discontent on the international level against China due to the Coronavirus pandemic and the proposed Hong Kong law. Because of this discontent, some of the leading countries in the world are trying to break the Chinese chain in the economic, trade and technology sectors. The

United States and the United Kingdom are at the forefront of this. The D10 Alliance proposed by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson can play an important role in dismantling the Chinese domination in the technology sector.