Japan government officials are planning to meet on 10 December to talk about ways to lower the risk of infiltration in government agencies via imported equipment, the Wall Street Journal reported. No individual company names were released but the meeting will likely centre around the government use of Chinese telecom equipment companies Huawei and ZTE, following US accusations the firms are engaged in cyberspying. The Yomiuri daily earlier reported that Japan has effectively decided to ban Huawei and ZTE equipment from being used in government contracts.
The US has mounted a campaign to stop other countries from using equipment from Huawei. The government has contacted telecom executives in Germany, Italy and Japan, as well as other countries, about what they see as cybersecurity risks. On 6 December, Canada arrested Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou in between flights, on suspicion she helped the company violate US trade sanctions with Iran.
Huawei has repeatedly said its equipment is safe. The company said it is owned by its employees and operates independently from the central government in Beijing.
