Allies balk at US efforts to elbow China out in hi-tech field

Economic impact

The country's semiconductor industry, led by Samsung Electronics and LG, is crucial for the US' export control efforts against China, tech news website Gizmochina said.

China makes up more than 60 percent of chip exports for South Korea, while the US receives only 7.7 percent.

Emre Alkin, professor at Topkapi University in Turkiye, wrote in an article for Tech Wire Asia that Turkiye needs at least 2 million kilometers of fiber optic network and microwave technologies to switch to 5G.

"The strategy of targeting Chinese firms by the United States and its allies during the (former US president Donald) Trump administration may have started with Huawei. However, the economic impact has ultimately affected many countries including my own, Turkiye," Alkin wrote.

"Due to frequent earthquakes, almost every city in the country, particularly Istanbul with millions of habitants, needs to be transformed into 'smart cities' for emergency communication and management. So, Turkiye needs companies like Huawei or other partners that can help it to develop."

British Telecommunications, one of the biggest network providers in the United Kingdom, spent nearly $705 million to remove Huawei's equipment from its EE mobile network, Reuters reported. Vodafone, a mobile phone giant in Europe, spent $219 million on it, while Deutsche Telekom is estimated to spend billions of dollars to replace Huawei antennas in European countries.

"Analysts say that removing Chinese infrastructure made the 5G infrastructure in Europe $55 billion more expensive and delayed it by one and a half years," Alkin wrote.