Huawei threat to UK 'very dangerous': US national security adviser
The U.K. gave Huawei limited access to build select parts of its new high-speed mobile network, despite U.S. objections
U.S. National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien argued Wednesday the U.K.'s decision to let Chinese tech giant Huawei control 35 percent of its 5G wireless networks is "very dangerous."
The U.K. on Tuesday decided to give Huawei limited access to build select parts of its new high-speed mobile network, despite the U.S. push for allies to ban the Chinese company.
"What we need to know is that Huawei is closely affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party," O'Brien told FOX Business' Maria Bartiromo on "Mornings with Maria." "It's affiliated with the surveillance technology that's being used against the Uighurs and others in China. It's a very dangerous thing to put Huawei into 5G."
Shoppers visit a Huawei store in Beijing. Chinese tech giant Huawei has filed a motion in U.S. court challenging the constitutionality of a law that limits its sales of telecom equipment. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
"5G is going to change the world," he added. "You're gonna have all your computing on the cloud and all your data on the cloud, so if that data comes down through Huawei, you're going to give access to all your data to China -- whether it's your tax returns, your financial records, your medical records, your social media -- all of that, the Chinese Communist Party is going to have access to through Huawei."
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The United States claims China's communist leaders could, under a 2017 national intelligence law, compel Huawei to carry out cyber espionage. Huawei denies that would be possible.
The U.S. encouraged the U.K. to think twice about allowing Huawei to build 5G infrastructure in the country, saying that allowing such a company to infiltrate its networks could put the country's surveillance and intelligence at risk of theft.
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"We think it's a very bad idea for the U.K. to ... allow the fox into the chicken coop, and we've made that very clear," O'Brien said.
"Look, the Brits are gonna do what they're gonna do. We've got a good relationship with them, but any country that has Huawei as an integral part of their system -- and the Brits are talking about 35 percent of their 5G being controlled by the Chinese Communist Party and Huawei -- we'll just have to adjust the way we communicate with the Brits. ... We'll send couriers over with paper documents if we have to," he added.
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The 5G infrastructure program is seen as being critical to Britain's economic future as the country leaves the European Union. But the decision is fraught, as the United States objects to allowing Huawei to provide vital infrastructure and has threatened to cut off intelligence sharing with allies that do use Huawei.
The British government said Tuesday after a meeting of its National Security Council that it is taking some steps that will allow it "to mitigate the potential risk posed by the supply chain and to combat the range of threats, whether cybercriminals or state-sponsored attacks.''
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.