Senior US official insists Canada on Huawei’s role in 5G network: officials – Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A high-ranking US envoy urged Canada on Monday over Ottawa’s upcoming decision whether to allow China’s Huawei Technologies to participate in its 5G network, a decision Washington opposes said officials.

Last year, the administration of US President Donald Trump warned Canada that it could lose access to lesser-known secret information if it did not block Huawei 5G technology.

Robert Blair, Trump’s special representative for international telecommunications policy, discussed “the importance of a safe and reliable next generation telecommunications infrastructure” and the defense partnership between the United States and Canada, said the Embassy of the United States in a statement.

Speaking before the meeting, two U.S. sources said Blair plans to point out that a Canadian decision to include Huawei could jeopardize its access to U.S. intelligence services.

The White House has accused Huawei of being able to spy on its customers and maintain close ties to the Chinese government, allegations denied by Huawei.

Washington’s campaign to outsmart the leading producer of telecommunications equipment was struck by Britain’s plans to give Huawei a limited role in its next generation wireless network.

One of the cabinet members who will decide the fate of Huawei 5G equipment in Canada, Public Safety Minister Bill Blair told lawmakers on Monday that “there is a very robust and important discussion between us and our allies “about Huawei.

Sources in Ottawa directly aware of the government’s deliberations indicate that a decision is still to come.

A spokesperson for Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said Monday’s meeting was “part of regular and ongoing conversations with the United States regarding national security and continental telecommunications”.

Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains, who will also have a say in the Ottawa decision, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp last Friday that Canada “will not be intimidated by any other jurisdiction” over the matter. decision.

When asked if he was referring to the Trump administration, he replied “maybe it was the wrong choice of words … we will not be influenced by other jurisdictions”.