‘Duplicitous and deceitful’ Huawei under fire from US

AMERICAN officials have branded China’s telecoms giant Huawei ‘duplicitous and deceitful’ and called for Europe to shun it.

Robert Strayer, the US State Department’s ambassador for cyber and international communications, said the company’s equipment carried ‘inherent risks’ and posed a security threat.

US officials have been meeting companies and national delegations at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the telecoms industry’s biggest annual gathering, to persuade them to ban Huawei kit from 5G mobile networks.

They claim it could be used for spying by China. Strayer said: ‘Threats to US networks have a direct bearing on the security of our allies, just as threats to allies’ networks have a direct bearing on the security of our networks.

‘We ask other governments and the private sector to consider the threat of Huawei and other information technology companies.

‘We know that Huawei itself has been duplicitous and deceitful.’

When challenged on evidence, Strayer replied: ‘I’d say the question is, do you want to have a system that is potentially compromised by the Chinese government or do you want a secure alternative?’

It came just hours after a top Huawei boss hit back at American spying claims. Guo Ping pointed to the US’s Prism surveillance programme, which was exposed in a massive leak by whistleblower Edward Snowden six years ago.

He added: ‘Huawei has a strong track record in security. The US accusation has no evidence, nothing. The irony is The US Cloud Act allows their entities to access data across borders. So, for the best technology and greater security, choose Huawei.’

His firm has already been completely or partly banned in Australia and New Zealand and faces a ban in the US. The UK is reviewing telecoms rules and has not decided if it will ban Huawei.