Mike Pompeo warned of Huawei risk ahead of Raab meeting
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab met with Pompeo this evening to discuss co-operation between the two countries but Huawei did not feature in their discussion.
The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called for the UK to “relook” at the decision to allow Huawei to have a role in its 5G infrastructure earlier today.
The “special relationship” has come under the spotlight because of ongoing disagreements about Huawei’s 5G network.
Ahead of the meeting, Pompeo told reporters: “We will make sure that when American information passes across a network we are confident that that network is a trusted one. Our view of Huawei is: putting it in your system creates real risk,” he said.
The US believes that the Chinese software company poses a national security risk and has repeatedly warned the UK against giving Huawei the green light. Pompeo today said it is an “extension of the Chinese Communist Party.”
Despite lobbying attempts, Prime Minister Boris Johnson granted Huawei a limited role in Britain’s 5G network on Tuesday.
Boris Johnson told parliament on Wednesday: “I want to assure … the country that I think it’s absolutely vital that people in this country do have access to the best technology available. But that we also do absolutely nothing to imperil our relationship with the United States, to do anything to compromise our critical national security infrastructure.
The UK government has insisted that Huawei will be barred from sensitive locations and its share of the market will be capped at 35 per cent.
Harry Dunn case
Raab spoke with Pompeo about Washington’s decision to reject the UK’s request for the extradition of Anne Sacoolas, an American diplomat’s wife suspected of causing death by dangerous driving.
An FCO spokesperson said: “The Foreign Secretary reiterated his disappointment at the US decision to reject the extradition request for Anne Sacoolas and emphasised the importance of delivering justice for Harry Dunn and his family.”
A statement from the US State Department said accepting the request would “render the invocation of diplomatic immunity a practical nullity”. At the time The Home Office said the decision appeared “to be a denial of justice”.
A spokesperson said Pompeo and Raab also discussed President Trump’s long-awaited Middle East peace plan. The foreign secretary “underlined the need to de-escalate regional tensions.”