diff --git a/package/python3/python3.mk b/package/python3/python3.mk
index 34e1297563..393b9fb2ac 100644
--- a/package/python3/python3.mk
+++ b/package/python3/python3.mk
@@ -41,8 +41,11 @@ HOST_PYTHON3_CONF_OPTS += 	\
 # Make sure that LD_LIBRARY_PATH overrides -rpath.
 # This is needed because libpython may be installed at the same time that
 # python is called.
+# Make python believe we don't have 'hg', so that it doesn't try to
+# communicate over the network during the build.
 HOST_PYTHON3_CONF_ENV += \
-	LDFLAGS="$(HOST_LDFLAGS) -Wl,--enable-new-dtags"
+	LDFLAGS="$(HOST_LDFLAGS) -Wl,--enable-new-dtags" \
+	ac_cv_prog_HAS_HG=/bin/false
 
 PYTHON3_DEPENDENCIES = host-python3 libffi
 
@@ -110,11 +113,14 @@ else
 PYTHON3_CONF_OPTS += --disable-ossaudiodev
 endif
 
+# Make python believe we don't have 'hg', so that it doesn't try to
+# communicate over the network during the build.
 PYTHON3_CONF_ENV += \
 	ac_cv_have_long_long_format=yes \
 	ac_cv_file__dev_ptmx=yes \
 	ac_cv_file__dev_ptc=yes \
-	ac_cv_working_tzset=yes
+	ac_cv_working_tzset=yes \
+	ac_cv_prog_HAS_HG=/bin/false
 
 # uClibc is known to have a broken wcsftime() implementation, so tell
 # Python 3 to fall back to strftime() instead.