Puzzlement of LG U+
The U.S. Congress is planning to reconsider U.S. troop deployment in countries using Huawei’s 5G and 6G equipment. Under the circumstances, LG U+’s move is drawing much attention.
At present, KT, SK Broadband and LG U+ are using Huawei equipment without exception. However, LG U+ is the only South Korean mobile carrier using the same equipment in 5G and 6G networks. The equipment accounts for 30 percent of LTE networks run by LG U+ and the company’s 5G base stations using the equipment are located in the metropolitan area and Gangwon Province.
“It is impossible to remove the entire Huawei equipment currently in operation and, given compatibility, the equipment cannot be ruled out in additional installation,” the company explained, adding, “When it comes to U.S. military bases in the capital city and the metropolitan area, our use of Huawei equipment is zero and all the equipment there is from Ericsson.” It continued to say that it has applied very strict security inspection procedures to Huawei equipment it uses.
Experts point out that the issue needs to be dealt with by the South Korean government. Earlier, in the United Kingdom and Australia, the governments stepped in to rule out Huawei equipment. On the other hand, the Moon Jae-in administration’s current stance is that whether to join the U.S. sanctions on Huawei is to be determined by individual enterprises.