How Huawei controls telecom infrastructure in Brazil

The G20 Summit in Japan will mark Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s first meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping. The get-together is expected to be “informal and brief,” but crucial for Brazil. 

China is the country’s undisputed top trading partner, accounting for 26 percent of all Brazilian exports. Since taking office in January, Mr. Bolsonaro has toned down the anti-Beijing rhetoric of his campaign—and his administration has made concrete efforts to build better relations with the Asian giant, including sending Vice President Hamilton Mourão and Agriculture Minister Tereza Cristina on official trips, with Mr. Bolsonaro himself planning to go there himself in August.

In light of the above, recent remarks from Foreign Minister Ernesto Araújo have been puzzling. Contradicting what Vice President Mourão told Chinese government officials just one month ago, Mr. Araújo told a weekly magazine that blocking the operations of telecom behemoth Huawei in Brazil is not off the table.

“We want to understand more about what the eventual problems would be, from a technical perspective, of relying on Huawei technology. It is a job that needs to be done, because we know there are worries from the Americans. We...