Amid reports suggesting that Huawei may not get the government's approval for 5G trials in India, Huawei India CEO Jay Chen stressed on Tuesday that the Chinese tech giant could begin the 5G trials within a month of approval from the government. "All of my engagements with the government have been positive so far. We are fully prepared. We can start the 5G trial within one month of getting approval from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT)," Chen told IANS on the sidelines of a media workshop on 5G.
"We are in talks with all the major telecom operators in India including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and the state-run BSNL for 5G roll-out in India," Chen added.
Huawei is leading the 5G race globally with its massive investments in R&D, but the Chinese giant is facing the heat from some Western countries, particularly the US which alleges that Huawei 5G network could pose a national security threat.
Dismissing the allegations as mere "politics", Chen stressed that no country has been able to give any evidence of wrongdoing on Huawei's part. "It would not be logical to exclude Huawei from the 5G trial in India as it would mean losing the benefits of innovative technologies that we can bring to the 5G ecosystem in the country," Chen noted.
"I hope India will have its own judgment," he said, adding in a lighter vein that 5G without Huawei could be what India would be without cricket.