Pakistan’s 5G Network… Brought To You By Huawei: Fawad Chaudhry

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Chinese telecom equipment provider Huawei has been pushing its 5G networking technology for quite some time across South and Southeast Asia, and it seems the message is getting across. Fawad Chaudhry, Pakistan’s science and technology minister, has said Huawei is the one that’s launching Pakistan’s 5G network.

His remark is raising more than a few eyebrows, especially of those who are concerned that Islamabad may be relying a little too much on China these days through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and related projects. This isn’t even the first controversial statement he has made. Earlier this month, he accidentally claimed the Hubble Space Telescope for Pakistan even though it was launched by NASA years ago.

Huawei will launch Pakistan’s 5G network, claims Chaudhry

Chaudhry made the comment during a press conference recently. He said Pakistan’s 5G network will usher in a new technology era.

“5G tech will arrive, not arrive but it’s almost launched by Huawei in Pakistan,” local media report quotes him as saying.

He also said Pakistani citizens will be able to enjoy the benefits of a faster 5G mobile network “sooner than they think.”

It rather sounds like he expects Pakistan’s 5G network to be up and running very soon, but other sources have indicated that Pakistan is actually targeting a launch of its 5G network in the second half of next year. After that, it will take some time before smartphones with 5G support become standard. At this point, 5G-equipped smartphones are still very nascent, which makes sense because smartphone makers are waiting for infrastructure to catch up.

In a hurry for 5G technology

Fawad Chaudhry’s comments are another sign that the world’s politicians are in a hurry to roll out the next generation of wireless technology. However, it will take quite some time to roll out the necessary infrastructure. U.S. President Donald Trump made a similar comment on the timing of the 5G rollout in the U.S., although he went even further by talking about 6G technology—which doesn’t even exist yet.

“I want 5G, and even 6G, technology in the United States as soon as possible,” he tweeted earlier this year.

Apparently, politicians in multiple countries see 5G as the next area of technology to win. Fawad Chaudhry “believes that the India-China war is actually a technology war about launching 5G services.”

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