Ramaphosa speaks out against using companies as pawns in trade wars
South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday slammed the use of private companies as pawns in trade disagreements between States.
Speaking at the inaugural Digital Economy Summit, in Midrand, he reiterated South Africa’s support of telecommunications giant Huawei amid now-alleviated US restrictions.
“This standoff between China and the US, where the technology company Huawei is being used as victim because of its successes, is an example of protectionism that will affect our own telecommunications sector, particularly the efforts to roll out the fifth-generation (5G) network, causing a setback on other networks as well,” he said.
“We support a company that is going to take our country and indeed, the world, to better technologies,” he said, indicating that the US was “jealous” that a Chinese company found a way to imagine a better future which goes beyond 5G technology.
“They have been unable to imagine what 5G can offer.”
The Western powerhouse earlier this year had taken a hardline stance during an impasse between it and China by effectively banning Huawei from trading with US businesses without a special licence.
The US had since US eased its restrictions on the Chinese technology company after talks between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 late in June.
However, the restrictions had led to several US companies suspending some services with Hauwei, sparking several concerned South African telecommunications groups to plead for Ramaphosa’s assistance.
Addressing delegates at the summit, Ramaphosa welcomed the move but stated that it was unnecessary to “punish” a company in what was a “fight” between two countries.
“We cannot afford to have our own economy being held back owing to jealously,” referring to the damage the tussle could do to South Africa’s technology companies and subsequently the economy.
“We want to go to 5G and only Huawei can take us there,” he said, quoting telecommunications companies viewpoint in the letter written to him warning that the trade impasse was hurting them.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation