The trail - grievances, scandals, crimes
It all starts with a lead, a key moment and the question: "How can this be?" Our reporters investigate and reconstruct abuses and track down those responsible.
The German government pulls the emergency brake: Chinese technology is to be removed from the 5G network. But how dependent are we on China for mobile communications? And how did it get this far? For years, Telekom & Co. built technology from Chinese manufacturers into the 5G mobile network - despite warnings from abroad about possible sabotage and espionage. And for a long time, politicians could not bring themselves to exclude these manufacturers from the network. For "Die Spur", reporters Laura Rosinus and Jeremias Brunner speak to cyber security experts, politicians and lobby observers.
They investigate the threat situation and the structural dependence on Chinese manufacturers Huawei and ZTE in the 5G network. "This dependency did not happen by chance, but in my view it is part of a strategy by the Chinese government, which has also really strongly promoted Huawei," says Antonia Hmaidi, a senior analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies who specialises in China's cyber security and hacking campaigns.
In an extensive investigation together with the portal for freedom of information, FragDenStaat, the authors investigate lobby meetings between politicians, network operators and Chinese manufacturers and reconstruct why political decisions were delayed for years. The research explores the question of whether political decision-makers have primarily focussed on the interests of the economy - despite the fact that the 5G network is critical infrastructure. "The federal governments have decided in favour of the individual interests of the network operators, but also of others, namely the industry exporting to China and producing in China," criticises CDU foreign policy expert Norbert Röttgen.
So have politicians made the same mistake as they did with Russian gas? The consequences of our dependency quickly became clear after the Russian attack on Ukraine. And will the agreement reached between the German government and grid operators in July 2024 really solve the problem?
Broadcasting on 01st of August 2024 at 04.30am + 31st of July 2024 at 10.45pm on ZDF
Music: POPVIRUS Library