Huawei to supply surveillance system equipment to Spain for €12.3 million, sparking political alarm

The Spanish government has signed contracts worth a total of €12.3 million with Chinese tech giant Huawei. The deals involve the supply and technical support of server equipment for storing data obtained from phone surveillance, conducted by court and prosecutor requests.

The contracts, arranged through centralized government procurement by the Ministry of the Interior for 2021–2025, provided Huawei’s OceanStor 6800 V5 storage systems for SITEL, Spain’s national lawful interception platform. This system is accessed by the National Police, Civil Guard, and Spanish intelligence agencies.

Although the contracts were formally approved by Spain’s Cryptologic Center, concerns are growing within law enforcement and political circles. Sources from The Objective report alarm not only over Huawei’s involvement in critical infrastructure, but also over potential risks of access to sensitive information related to investigations and organized crime.

With the EU tightening its stance on Chinese IT firms, particularly in cybersecurity, cooperation with Huawei has drawn criticism. Opposition parties accuse the socialist government of undermining national security and increasing dependence on foreign technology.

In response, Huawei stated it operates strictly within European law and denied any transfer of data to third parties.