Britain’s sovereignty is at risk if the country allows Chinese tech giant Huawei to help build its 5G infrastructure, the US Secretary of State has warned.
Mike Pompeo described the decision facing the National Security Council as “momentous” in a last ditch plea to ministers who are expected to make the call on Tuesday.
The US administration has previously warned allies not to allow Huawei to form part of their 5G networks, claiming it would be a security risk, something the company vehemently denies.
But Mr Pompeo wrote on Twitter on Sunday night: “The UK has a momentous decision ahead on 5G.
“British MP Tom Tugendhat gets it right: ‘The truth is that only nations able to protect their data will be sovereign’.
He retweeted a comment by Mr Tugendhat, the chairman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee in the last parliament, in which the MP said: “Sovereignty means control of data as much as land.
“We need to decide what we’re willing to invest in and who were willing to share our tech with.
“The real costs will come later if we get this wrong and allow Huawei to run 5G.”
Mr Pompeo is due to meet Boris Johnson and the Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on a visit to London this week.
Home Secretary Priti Patel dismissed reports on Sunday that she is “on the warpath” following claims Mr Johnson has been “bounced” by officials into letting Huawei build non-core parts of the 5G network.
She told Sky’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday the report in the Sunday Times was “not accurate”, adding: “My role is very much to protect the national security of our country and that also includes intelligence services and communications as well.
“We are having discussions, and rightly so, and those discussions remain at the National Security Council level and within-Cabinet level.
“And of course we will have those discussions. We’ll have them privately and I’m not going to comment on speculation in newspapers.”
She said the UK’s co-operation with the Five Eyes network – an alliance comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States – would “absolutely continue”.
On Friday the Prime Minister discussed the security of telecommunications networks in a phone call with Donald Trump, according to the White House.
“The two leaders discussed important regional and bilateral issues, including working together to ensure the security of our telecommunications networks,” a White House statement said.
Last year, the US imposed trade restrictions on Huawei over concerns about the company’s security and ties to the Chinese government.
Allegations that their telecommunications equipment could be used to spy on people has been repeatedly denied by the tech giant.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel