This article examines the claim that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) promotes its commercial interests in building 5G network infrastructure abroad to advance digital authoritarianism. Critics view China’s actions as part of a well-coordinated, strategic effort to promote authoritarian values, spread its version of authoritarianism, and shape global governance norms around information and communication technologies. However, concerns over China’s 5G infrastructure in supporting digital authoritarianism may be overstated. This essay finds that geopolitical dynamics and local economic considerations challenge China’s capacity to influence governance practices and questions the notion that China’s promotion of its 5G network infrastructure has a clear political, strategic intent. The findings suggest that the United States needs to refocus its messaging around the geopolitical and security risks associated with greater dependence on Chinese digital infrastructure as well as create new industrial policies to better compete economically in 5G.
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5G is the “fifth generation” of mobile telecommunications. Although 5G builds on 4G technology and infrastructure, 5G is revolutionary in that software will replace hardware components and subsequently “virtualize” the network through the existing language of internet protocol (IP). 5G’s next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) supports both non-standalone (NSA)—for example, existing 4G technology and infrastructure—and standalone (SA) architectures to ensure a smooth transition while
China and “Digital Authoritarianism”
This article uses a common definition of digital authoritarianism: “the use of digital information technology by authoritarian regimes to surveil, repress, and manipulate domestic and foreign populations.”21 However, breaking down this
The U.S. Checks Huawei’s Global Reach
The development of 5G (on a global scale) is a complex and iterative process. In 2019, predictions estimated it would take seven years and several “releases” to reach only 10 percent of total global connections by 2024.26 In its 2019 report on 5G, the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA), an industry organization representing the interests of mobile operators worldwide, estimated that 5G connections would reach 1.35 billion by
The Policy Debate
Do China’s 5G networks “export” its version of authoritarianism? There is a well-established narrative that the societal impacts of a nation’s 5G network infrastructure reflects the values of that network’s creators. This narrative contends that the values of those who design a technology are embedded in that technology. Moreover, China’s first-mover advantage in 5G not only secures economic benefits but also allows Chinese values—through the network’s technological design—to shape how
A More Complicated Picture: Chinese 5G Networks Abroad and the Local Environment
A global snapshot. Similar to its surveillance technologies (outside a 5G context), China’s provision of 5G network infrastructure does not appear to fall along ideological lines.
Across various geographical regions (and thus geopolitical contexts), China’s 5G networks span across autocracies and democracies alike. Similarly, non-Chinese vendors supply 5G networks across regime types.
Sources (s): Countries are categorized using The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index 2020 report. In
Is the 5G Threat Premature?
This report challenges the conventional wisdom that China’s telecommunications technologies—specifically its 5G networks—encourages or spreads digital authoritarianism. Both geopolitical dynamics and economic constraints serve as decisive factors for autocracies and democracies alike when choosing a 5G network provider. Moreover, China’s strategic intent notwithstanding, scholarship on the impact of advanced Chinese technologies (e.g., Huawei’s Smart City and Safe City) abroad—which will depend
Michael V. Ceci is a Ph.D. student in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology, and is a Major in the United States Air Force.
Recent developments are increasing coverage of the 5th generation technology, more commonly known as 5G. Even though limits in infrastructure still restricts widespread coverage of this technology in most parts of the world, some leading countries like China expect full urban and rural coverage by 2025 (Ceci and Rubin, 2022). In Europe, the European Commission has set the objective for widespread coverage by 2030 (https://www.eca.europa.eu/Lists/ECADocuments/SR22_03/SR_Security-5G-networks_EN.pdf), and the United States is also working towards this goal.
Telecommunications industries are rapidly deploying the fifth generation (5G) spectrum and there is public concern about the safety and health impacts of this type of Radio Frequency Radiation (RFR), in part because of the lack of comparable scientific evidence. In this study we have used a validated commercially available setting producing a uniform field to expose zebrafish embryos (ZFe) to unmodulated 700 and 3500 MHz frequencies. We have combined a battery of toxicity, developmental and behavioral assays to further explore potential RFR effects. Our neurobehavioral profiles include a tail coiling assay, a light/dark activity assay, two thigmotaxis anxiety assays (auditory and visual stimuli), and a startle response - habituation assay in response to auditory stimuli. ZFe were exposed for 1 and 4 h during the blastula period of development and endpoints evaluated up to 120 hours post fertilization (hpf). Our results show no effects on mortality, hatching or body length. However, we have demonstrated specific organ morphological effects, and behavioral effects in activity, anxiety-like behavior, and habituation that lasted in larvae exposed during the early embryonic period. A decrease in acetylcholinesterase activity was also observed and could explain some of the observed behavioral alterations. Interestingly, effects were more pronounced in ZFe exposed to the 700 MHz frequency, and especially for the 4 h exposure period. In addition, we have demonstrated that our exposure setup is robust, flexible with regard to frequency and power testing, and highly comparable. Future work will include exposure of ZFe to 5G modulated signals for different time periods to better understand the potential health effects of novel 5G RFR.
Michael V. Ceci is a Ph.D. student in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology, and is a Major in the United States Air Force.
Lawrence Rubin is an Associate Professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology, as well as a Templeton Fellow in the National Security Program at the Foreign Policy Research Institute.
The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.
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