LONDON: BT CEO Philip Jansen urged the British government on Monday not to move too fast to ban China’s Huawei from the 5G network, cautioning that there could be outages and even security issues if it did.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson is due to decide this week whether to impose tougher restrictions on Huawei, after intense pressure from the United States to ban the Chinese telecoms behemoth from Western 5G networks.
Johnson in January defied President Donald Trump and granted Huawei a limited role in the 5G network, but the perception that China did not tell the whole truth over the coronavirus crisis and a row over Hong Kong has changed the mood in London.
“If you are to try not to have Huawei at all, ideally we would want seven years and we could probably do it in five,” Jansen told BBC radio.
Asked what the risks would be if telecoms operators were told to do it in less than five years, Jansen said: “We need to make sure that any change of direction does not lead to more risk in the short term.”
“If we get to a situation where things need to go very, very fast, then you are into a situation where potentially service for 24 million BT Group mobile customers is put into question — outages,” he said.
In what some have compared to the Cold War antagonism with the Soviet Union, the United States is worried that 5G dominance is a milestone toward Chinese technological supremacy that could define the geopolitics of the 21st century.
The United States says Huawei is an agent of the Chinese Communist State and cannot be trusted.
Huawei, the world’s biggest producer of telecoms equipment, has said the United States wants to frustrate its growth because no US company could offer the same range of technology at a competitive price.
BT warns UK that banning Huawei too fast could cause outages
https://arab.news/zkgd7
BT warns UK that banning Huawei too fast could cause outages
- Prime Minister Boris Johnson is due to decide this week whether to impose tougher restrictions on Huawei
- British PM in January granted Huawei a limited role in the 5G network
Global investors commit more than $3bn to King Salman Park as Saudi giga-project secures new deals
RIYADH: The King Salman Park Foundation has secured more than $3.8 billion in new private-sector commitments at the MIPIM 2026 real estate conference, including a landmark $3 billion fund backed by international investors to develop a major mixed-use district in the heart of Riyadh.
According to a press release, the announcements bring total committed investment in the 17.2 sq. kilometers urban regeneration project to over $5.3 billion across five major packages.
Launched in 2019 under Saudi Vision 2030, the development is designed to be the world’s largest city park and aims to boost green space, improve quality of life, and feature over 1 million trees and extensive leisure facilities.
A $3 billion metro-connected district
The largest of the two packages, designated Package 5, will see a consortium led by Kolaghassi Development Co. deliver a residential-led district with a total built-up area exceeding 1 million sq. meters.
It will provide approximately 3,700 residential units, a K–12 school, around 300 hospitality keys and more than 100,000 sq m of Grade A office space alongside a wide variety of retail and dining offerings.
The development is supported by a Saudi-domiciled, Capital Market Authority-regulated fund managed by Mulkia Investment Co. that has attracted leading investors from the Kingdom and across the world.
Kolaghassi Development Co. will lead the project alongside Al Othaim Investment, one of the Kingdom’s real estate players, and RXR, a New York-headquartered real estate investor and operator.
“Securing investment of this scale, supported by international capital and expertise, is an important milestone for King Salman Park,” said George Tanasijevich, CEO of King Salman Park Foundation.
$850 million cultural district package
In a separate announcement, the Foundation confirmed the award of Package 4 to a consortium led by Retal Urban Development Co., with support from a fund managed by SAB Invest.
The project has a total value exceeding $850 million and will host more than 600 residential units, over 140 hotel keys, and almost 50,000 sq m of Grade A office space, alongside curated retail and food and beverage experiences.
“This opportunity reflects the maturity of Saudi Arabia’s real estate investment landscape and our confidence in culture-led, mixed-use urban destinations as a driver of sustainable returns,” said Abdullah Al-Braikan, CEO and founder of Retal Urban Development Co.
Ali Al-Mansour, CEO of SAB Invest, said the fund structure brings together “long-term capital, experienced development partners, and a shared commitment to place-making excellence” while contributing to Riyadh’s cultural vibrancy and the Kingdom’s quality-of-life ambitions under Vision 2030.
