The Philippines on Thursday launched Southeast Asia’s first 5G broadband service with Huawei supplying the core equipment, in another win for the Chinese telecom giant.

Globe Telecom Inc, one of the largest telecom carriers in the Philippines, aims to offer high-speed Internet to tens of thousands of homes and offices in key urban centers as part of its 1.2-billion-U.S.-dollar capital spending this year, said Alberto de Larrazabal, Globe’s chief commercial officer.

Globe would use Huawei’s equipment like radios and modems to deliver 5G quality broadband Internet, he added. Huawei and Finland’s Nokia were Globe’s equipment providers for its 4G service.

The United States had been trying to persuade governments and telecoms operators to shun Huawei, accusing the company of posing national security risks without providing any evidence.

European countries have refused to ban Huawei despite heavy pressure from Washington to do so, as no country wants to lose out on the global 5G race. Earlier this month, both Britain and Spain launched commercial 5G networks using Huawei equipment.

As of May, Huawei has signed 46 5G commercial contracts in 30 countries, shipping more than 100,000 5G base stations.

Globe hired independent firms “to ensure that our security protocols are up to date, to make sure privacy and security issues are addressed,” de Larrazabal said.

Philippine consumers, the world’s top social media users, often get frustrated with slow and choppy Internet connections. The Philippines’ mobile Internet and fixed broadband speeds lag behind its neighbors, data from Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index showed. 

It ranks 107th among 178 countries in terms of fixed broadband speed at 19.55 megabits per second (Mbps) versus the global average of 59.6 Mbps. Among 140 countries, it ranks 107th in terms of mobile Internet speed at 15.10 Mbps, nearly half of the 27.22 Mbps global average. 

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(With input from Reuters)