“The total value of Chinese business for Finnish companies is estimated at more than EUR 20 billion per year”, Report 2023 from the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which labeled China “one of our most important trading partners”.

“Chinese investment plays the largest role in Finland compared to any other EU country, with 8% of the foreign direct investment stock held by China, which is ten times higher than the EU average,” said Lee-Makiyama , referring to a study his research group did.

On the other end of that bargain, things haven’t looked good for Nokia for years. The Finnish technology leader’s share of base station and antenna sales in China — its biggest market globally — fell to 0.9 percent in 2023 from 6.2 percent in 2019, according to confidential industry figures seen by POLITICO.

According to Strand, “Finland hoped that if it went soft on Huawei, the Chinese would throw some crumbs after Nokia.” But “the reality is, no breadcrumbs came,” he said.

Beyond the Chinese market, governments around the world have raised barriers to the use of Chinese 5G equipment – ​​spurred by a diplomatic campaign in both Washington, DC and European capitals.

Despite this push, which is said to benefit Huawei’s rivals Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson, the Shenzhen-based company comfortably holds its position as the top vendor, with around 31% of the global revenue market share, according to the latest figures from the London-based research firm. Omdia, followed by Europe’s Ericsson (24%) and Nokia (20%).