GERMANY: RTRS-Deutsche Bahn To Use Chinese Tech Despite Gov't Security Concerns

Reuters is reporting that the German state railway company Deutsche Bahn is set to allow the use of tech from Chinese tech giant Huawei in its massive digitalisation programme, despite critics raising security concerns about using Chinese tech in critical infrastructure. The contract, made in Dec 2022, received little reporting at the time but could be seen to go against Chancellor Olaf Scholz's "Zeitenwende" or "end of an era" announced in 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine that sought to emphasise security in critical areas over cheaper supply chains with potentially unreliable partners.

• The timing of the story is inopportune for the German gov't and the EU, as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meets with US President Joe Biden in Washington, D.C., (see 1105GMT bullet). The White House is continuing to press the EU and its member states to reduce its economic reliance on China.
• Reuters: ""If it's true that the company is betting more on Huawei technology, then that raises some serious questions," said Konstantin von Notz, chairman of the parliamentary committee that oversees the intelligence services. The lawmaker from the Greens junior coalition partner said it was up to this government "to rectify as quickly as possible years of ignorance and massive shortcomings in security policy".