Australia, Canada, UK, USA issue statement on telecom supplier diversity

Australia, Canada, the UK, and the USA have issued a Joint statement on telecommunications supplier diversity. The statement highlights the four countries’ commitment ‘to ensuring the security and resilience of [their] telecommunications networks, including by fostering a diverse supply chain and influencing the development of future telecommunications technologies such as 6G’. The countries also note the role of open and interoperable networks in creating ‘a more open, diverse, and innovative market’.

To achieve telecommunications suuplier diversity, the countries will:

• Share information on their policy approaches to telecom suupliers diversity;
• Take a complementary and cooperative approach to telecom research and development;
• Proactively address security concerns as open and interoperable architectures develop;
• Work together to encourage transparency in industry-led standards-setting processes;
• Encourage industry to avoid market fragmentation;
• Coordinate efforts when engaging with international stakeholders and fora, share and implement best practices, and work together to tackle shared policy challenges.

Furthermore, Australia, Canada, and the USA have endorsed the Open RAN Principles published by the UK in 2022: open disaggregation, standards-based compliance, demonstrated interoperability, and implementation neutrality.

The initiatives are expected to help open up the global market to new competitors and increase efforts to lessen the world’s dependence on a limited number of telecommunications corporations to build and operate 5G and future networks.