US explores requiring domestic 5G equipment to be made outside China

US President Donald Trump is looking to require next-generation 5G cellular equipment used in the United States to be designed and manufactured outside China, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter.

As part of a 150-day review that started after cybersecurity concerns in the United States, officials are asking telecom equipment makers if they can develop US-bound hardware including cellular-tower electronics as well as routers and switches, and software outside of China, the WSJ reported.

In May, the Trump administration took aim at China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, banning the firm from buying vital US technology without special approval and effectively barring its equipment from US telecom networks on national security grounds.