The censoring capability in Xiaomi's Mi 10T 5G phone
software has been turned off for the "European Union region" but can
be turned on remotely at any time, the country's National Cyber Security Centre
said in a report on Tuesday.
A Xiaomi spokesman said in a statement sent to Reuters on
Wednesday its device "does not censor communications to or from its
users".
The Defence Ministry is now drafting the legislation to ban
public institutions from procuring "untrustworthy" equipment,
including smartphones, with a view to presenting it to the parliament for
debate by the end of this year, Abukevicius told Reuters.
"It's quite obvious that consequences of the
legislation would be similar to those of the earlier legislation on 5G
equipment," he said.
Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei protested in May as
Lithuanian parliament decreed only equipment approved by the government on
national security grounds could be used for next generation 5G network in the
country.
"It's not news that Lithuania has made a political
decision to cooperate in technology with NATO and EU countries, which are
democratic and have a rule of law," Abukevicius said.
The National Cyber Security Centre report said terms potentially
subject to censorship by the Xiaomi phone's system apps, such as the default
internet browser, included "Free Tibet", "Long live Taiwan
independence" and "democracy movement."
Shares of Xiaomi fell nearly five percent to HKD21.95 (roughly
Rs. 200) on Wednesday, their biggest daily percentage drop since July 27.
China demanded last month that Lithuania withdraw its
ambassador in Beijing and recalled its envoy to Vilnius after Taiwan announced
that its mission in Lithuania would be called the Taiwanese Representative
Office.
Taiwanese missions in Europe and the United States use the
name of the city Taipei, avoiding a reference to the island itself, which China
claims as its own territory.
US President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake
Sullivan last week stressed support to Lithuania's prime minister Ingrida
Simonyte in the face of pressure from China. © Reuters