Thread by @JanoschDelcker

A "new Cold War" has broken out, analysts on both side of the Atlantic say.

This time, it's over information technology — but, like back in the old Cold War days, the key battleground is, once again, Berlin.

Here's why [Thread]

The backdrop: The Trump administration is on a global crusade against Chinese tech giant Huawei, and has spent the past few months pressing its international allies to take a stronger stance against the company. /2

In Europe, this is pitting countries, which remain divided over the issue, against each other. (Read @laurenscerulus 's analysis for more:
politico.eu/article/teleco… ) /3

That's where Berlin comes in.

Germany is set to auction spectrum frequencies for 5G early next year. The country is debating whether Huawei should be allowed to provide equipment for the rollout.

And “if Huawei loses Berlin, they lose Europe,” one analyst told me. /4

Why? As the bloc's largest economy, Germany's decision on whether to restrict Huawei is likely to serve as a model for other European countries, many of which depend on Berlin's cybersecurity expertise. /5

This means that the outcome in Berlin will likely determine whether the U.S. campaign is as successful in Europe as it was in Australia or Japan, where it convinced counterparts to restrict Huawei. /6

Unsurprisingly, a lobbying battle is is raging in the backrooms of Berlin over whether or not — and if so, how — to exclude Huawei. /7

In closed-door meetings, Trump's administration is turning up the heat on Berlin, with U.S. technology experts presenting German policymakers with information that they say provides "reason" enough to exclude the firm, according to our reporting. /8

At the same time, Huawei — which has spent over 15 years building up a network in Germany — has its lobbyists swarm the city trying to convince lawmakers otherwise. /9

Advocates for Huawei warn that excluding them would slow down the rollout of 5G mobile internet across Germany — which resonates in a city where leaders are under domestic pressure to take action against the country's patchy Internet connections. /10

Want to dig deeper? Here’s our story from Berlin, which includes interviews with some of the key German lawmakers.
politico.eu/article/us-ram…