The United States is urging its allies to stop using Huawei telecommunications equipment because the Chinese company poses a security threat, according to a published report.

The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the discussions, reports that US officials are pushing countries that host American military bases to ban the use of Huawei equipment from their wireless and internet networks.

The US military uses secure networks for its most sensitive communications, but it is concerned that much of its traffic still moves over commercial networks in countries such as Germany, Italy and Japan, the Journal reported. US officials are meeting with government representatives and telecom executives in the other countries to urge them to exclude Huawei equipment from government and commercial networks.

Huawei equipment increases the risk of cyberattacks and could allow China to spy on communications or disable connections in the fast growing “internet of things,” the US officials argue.

“We engage with countries around the world about our concerns regarding cyberthreats in telecommunications infrastructure,” an unnamed US official told the Journal. “As they’re looking to move to 5G, we remind them of those concerns. There are additional complexities to 5G networks that make them more vulnerable to cyberattacks.”

Huawei told CNN Business Friday that its equipment is trusted by customers in 170 countries and by 46 of the world’s 50 largest telecommunications companies.

“Huawei is surprised by the behaviors of the US government detailed in the article,” it said. “If a government’s behavior extends beyond its jurisdiction, such activity should not be encouraged. Huawei firmly believes that our partners and customers will make the right choice based on their own judgment and experience of working with Huawei.”

US intelligence officials have expressed concern about the safety of products made by Huawei and another Chinese tech firm, ZTE. The Pentagon in May ordered stores on American military bases to stop selling smartphones made by the companies. And in February, top officials from the CIA, NSA, FBI and the Defense Intelligence Agency told a Senate committee that those firms’ smartphones posed a security threat to American customers.

Some other allies have already taken steps to limit Huawei. The company announced in August that the Australian government has blocked it from providing 5G technology for the country’s wireless networks.

The report comes at a time of growing trade tensions between the United States and China. Each country has imposed tariffs on the other’s products and threatened more. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are due to meet at the G20 summit in Argentina next week.

The White House and the Department of Commerce did not respond to a request for comment on the report. </s> The U.S. government is urging allied nations to avoid using telecommunications equipment from China’s Huawei Technologies Company, even though some of those countries have already made large purchases of Huawei equipment, according to a report published Friday.

The U.S. has expressed concerns that Chinese military and intelligence units have compromised Huawei products, posing security risks.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that U.S. officials are concerned about host countries using Huawei equipment in close proximity to American military bases and about Chinese tech compromising the security of next-generation 5G wireless networks. The U.S. military has some dedicated equipment for its most sensitive communications, but a great deal of the communications traffic from American installations in foreign countries passes through local telecom networks.

American officials are offering detailed briefings on the security risks posed by Chinese equipment:

The briefings are aimed at dissuading governments and telecom executives from using Huawei network components in both government and commercially operated networks. A core focus of the briefings is Beijing’s ability to force Chinese corporations to comply with government requests from government authorities, a U.S. official said. The talking points also emphasize how wireless and internet networks in a few years could be more susceptible to cyberattacks or espionage, people familiar with the briefings said. Today’s cellular-tower equipment, for instance, is largely isolated from the “core” systems that transfer much of a network’s voice and data traffic. But in the 5G networks telecom carriers are preparing to install, cellular-tower hardware will take over some tasks from the core—and that hardware could potentially be used to disrupt the core via cyberattacks. For that reason, U.S. officials worry that Huawei or ZTE cellular-tower equipment could compromise swaths of a telecom network. Huawei is the world’s No. 2 smartphone maker behind Samsung Electronics Co. It is the global leader for telecom equipment, such as the hardware that goes into cellular towers, internet networks and other infrastructure that enables modern communication. The company has been all but shut out of that market in the U.S. after a 2012 congressional report labeled it a national-security threat. American officials say the company could be compelled by Beijing to use its knowledge of its components to snoop on or disrupt telecommunications networks.

The Journal noted American officials are not alone in these concerns. Australia has already banned Huawei and another Chinese company, ZTE, from participating in its 5G network, while the U.K. is conducting a telecom security review that does not specifically name any companies but may be motivated by concerns about Huawei, whose products are popular in Britain. The WSJ article also mentions a “new wariness” toward Huawei in Germany and the possibility of restrictions on its products in Japan.

Unfortunately for concerned U.S. policymakers, Chinese technology is already well established in many allied countries. Italian telecom executives reportedly told U.S. officials they simply cannot stop using Huawei and ZTE products because the Chinese equipment is inexpensive and flexible. A British telecom executive described Huawei as the “only true 5G supplier right now” to the Journal.

Reuters reported on Friday that Huawei has signed 22 commercial contracts for 5G networks so far and is opening an information security lab in Germany to help defuse security concerns before auctions for 5G network spectrum next year.

A group of senior German officials is mounting a last-ditch effort to ban Chinese companies from the 5G project. The German foreign and interior ministries are said to be especially concerned about Chinese participation after speaking with their counterparts in the United States and Australia.

“There is serious concern. If it were up to me we would do what the Australians are doing,” one German official said, referring to Australia’s ban on Huawei and ZTE. Even the German left, which is generally opposed to freezing entire countries out of German markets, has expressed apprehension about Huawei and pointed to Chinese cybersecurity laws that literally require all Chinese companies to “collaborate in national intelligence work.”

Huawei has consistently denied allegations that it works with Chinese intelligence and issued such a response to the Journal piece on Friday:

No Chinese corporation has a good answer to the simple truth that Chinese law absolutely requires them to work with Beijing’s military and intelligence operations upon demand. Even if it were true that Huawei is not currently injecting backdoors and other security flaws into its products for the benefit of Chinese intelligence, the government could compel it to do so tomorrow and arrest its executives instantly if they hesitated to comply.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that stocks in Chinese tech companies are dropping as a result of the U.S. campaign against them, and indeed because of the Journal’s own reporting on that campaign. Conversely, the shares of European competitors to Huawei and ZTE such as Ericsson and Nokia are rising as the looming possibility of bans or caps on Chinese products creates market opportunities for them. The Chinese government has denounced U.S. warnings about the security of Huawei and ZTE products as protectionist schemes to suppress Chinese competition and create market share for American and European companies. </s> The U.S. government is trying to persuade wireless and internet providers in allied countries to avoid telecommunications equipment from China's Huawei Technologies, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

REUTERS: The U.S. government is trying to persuade wireless and internet providers in allied countries to avoid telecommunications equipment from China's Huawei Technologies, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

U.S. officials have reached out to their government counterparts and telecom executives in friendly countries where Huawei equipment is already in wide use about what they see as cybersecurity risks, according to the WSJ report https://on.wsj.com/2KpHKgr, which cited unnamed people familiar with the situation.

Huawei has come under scrutiny in the United States recently.

Intelligence agency leaders and others have said they are concerned that Huawei and other Chinese companies may be beholden to the Chinese government or ruling Communist Party, raising the risk of espionage.

Washington has been considering increasing financial aid for telecommunications development in countries that shun Chinese-made equipment, the WSJ reported.

One of the government's concerns is based on the use of Chinese telecom equipment in countries that host U.S. military bases, such as Germany, Italy and Japan, the report added.

A U.S. Department of Commerce spokesman said in a statement that the department would remain vigilant against any threat to U.S. national security. Huawei did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. </s> The US government is trying to persuade wireless and internet providers in allied countries to avoid telecommunications equipment from China's Huawei Technologies, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

US officials have reached out to their government counterparts and telecom executives in friendly countries where Huawei equipment is already in wide use about what they see as cyber-security risks, according to the WSJ report, which cited unnamed people familiar with the situation.

Huawei has come under scrutiny in the United States recently.

Intelligence agency leaders and others have said they are concerned that Huawei and other Chinese companies may be beholden to the Chinese government or ruling Communist Party, raising the risk of espionage.

Washington has been considering increasing financial aid for telecommunications development in countries that shun Chinese-made equipment, the WSJ reported.

One of the government's concerns is based on the use of Chinese telecom equipment in countries that host US military bases, such as Germany, Italy and Japan, the report added.

A US Department of Commerce spokesman said in a statement that the department would remain vigilant against any threat to US national security. Huawei did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. </s> (Reuters) - The U.S. government is trying to persuade wireless and internet providers in allied countries to avoid telecommunications equipment from China’s Huawei Technologies [HWT.UL], the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

U.S. officials have reached out to their government counterparts and telecom executives in friendly countries where Huawei equipment is already in wide use about what they see as cybersecurity risks, according to the WSJ report on.wsj.com/2KpHKgr, which cited unnamed people familiar with the situation.

Huawei has come under scrutiny in the United States recently.

Intelligence agency leaders and others have said they are concerned that Huawei and other Chinese companies may be beholden to the Chinese government or ruling Communist Party, raising the risk of espionage.

Washington has been considering increasing financial aid for telecommunications development in countries that shun Chinese-made equipment, the WSJ reported.

One of the government’s concerns is based on the use of Chinese telecom equipment in countries that host U.S. military bases, such as Germany, Italy and Japan, the report added.

Huawei did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. </s> US Senators Mark Warner and Marco Rubio on Thursday urged the Trump administration not to use Huawei Technologies Co as a bargaining chip in trade talks with China that might allow expanded use of the company's equipment in the US telecommunications industry.

"Allowing the use of Huawei equipment in US telecommunications infrastructure is harmful to our national security,” the senators wrote. "In no way should Huawei be used as a bargaining chip in trade negotiations."

Trump reiterated on Monday in a CNBC interview that Huawei could be part of a trade deal with China, a position he has repeatedly stated, even though he has said Huawei is "dangerous."

Rubio, a Republican and Warner, a Democrat, both serve on the Senate Intelligence Committee.

In a letter to US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the senators said "Europeans have publicly expressed fears that the administration will soften its position on Huawei in the United States to gain leverage in trade talks, as the administration did in June 2018 when the seven-year ban on ZTE was reversed."

Last month, the Trump administration took aim at China’s Huawei, banning the firm from buying vital US technology without special approval and effectively barring its equipment from US telecom networks on national security grounds.

Taken together, the two moves threaten Huawei's ability to continue to sell many products because of its reliance on American suppliers and represents a significant escalation in the US government's worldwide campaign against the company.

Washington believes the handsets and network equipment for telecommunications companies made by Huawei could be used by the Chinese state to spy on Americans.

Huawei has repeatedly denied the allegations. Members of Congress said Trump's executive order last month on addressing threats to US telecommunications networks was squarely aimed at Chinese companies like Huawei, which generated $93 billion in revenue last year and is seen as a national champion in China.

Huawei equipment is used in many rural US telecommunications networks and the Federal Communications Commission has been debating whether it should prohibit wireless companies from using US government funds to buy Huawei gear for their networks or force them to remove existing equipment.

Washington is also seeking the extradition of Huawei Chief Financial Executive Meng Wanzhou from Canada after her arrest in Vancouver last December on a US warrant. China has since upped the pressure on Canada, halting Canadian canola imports and in May suspended the permits of two major pork producers.

The senators said any changes to Huawei's status "must be pursued in a risk-based way, separate from any trade negotiations, and consistent with national security considerations... Conflating national security concerns with levers in trade negotiations undermines this effort, and endangers American security." </s> The US government is trying to persuade wireless and Internet providers in allied countries to avoid telecommunications equipment from China’s Huawei Technologies, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. The move would further pile pressure on the world’s biggest telecom gear maker, which is under scrutiny from western intelligence agencies for its perceived ties to China’s government and the possibility its equipment could be used for espionage.US officials have reached out to their government counterparts and telecom executives in friendly countries where Huawei equipment is already in wide use about what they see as cybersecurity risks, according to the WSJ report, which cited unnamed people familiar with the situation.The US has already largely barred Huawei from supplying its government and contractors while Australia has banned the company from supplying equipment for a 5G mobile network.Huawei, which has repeatedly denied engaging in intelligence work for any government, is one of several Chinese tech companies that have come under US government scrutiny as a trade war between the two countries escalates.On Friday, the Hong Kong shares of rival ZTE Corp fell as much as 5.6%, dragging down the sector. They recouped some losses to trade down 2% around midday while the firm’s Shenzhen shares were down 3%.Washington has been considering increasing financial aid for telecommunications development in countries that shun Chinesemade equipment, the WSJ reported on Thursday.One of the government’s concerns is based on the use of Chinese telecom equipment in countries that host US militarybases, such as Germany, Italy and Japan, the report added.A US department of commerce spokesman said in a statementthat the department would remain vigilant against any threat to US national security. </s> Huawei said it had filed a complaint in a federal court in Texas challenging Section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), signed into law by U.S. President Donald Trump in August, which bars federal agencies and their contractors from procuring its equipment and services.

The lawsuit marks the latest confrontation between China and the United States, which spent most of 2018 slapping import tariffs on billions of dollars worth of each other's goods. The year ended with the arrest of Huawei's chief financial officer (CFO) in Canada at U.S. request, to the consternation of China.

Long before Trump initiated the trade war, Huawei's activities were under scrutiny by U.S. authorities, according to interviews with 10 people familiar with the Huawei probes and documents related to the investigations seen by Reuters.

"The U.S. Congress has repeatedly failed to produce any evidence to support its restrictions on Huawei products. We are compelled to take this legal action as a proper and last resort," Huawei Rotating Chairman Guo Ping said in a statement.

"This ban not only is unlawful, but also restricts Huawei from engaging in fair competition, ultimately harming U.S. consumers. We look forward to the court's verdict."

While Huawei had very little share of the U.S. market before the bill, it is the world's biggest telecoms gear maker and is seeking to be at the forefront of a global roll-out of fifth generation (5G) mobile networks and services.

In its lawsuit, Huawei said its "equipment and services are subject to advanced security procedures, and no backdoors, implants, or other intentional security vulnerabilities have been documented in any of the more than 170 countries in the world where Huawei equipment and services are used."

The privately owned firm has embarked on a public relations and legal offensive as Washington lobbies allies to abandon Huawei when building 5G networks, centring on a 2017 Chinese law requiring companies cooperate with national intelligence work.

"The U.S. Government is sparing no effort to smear the company and mislead the public," said Guo in a news briefing at Huawei's headquarters in southern China.

The NDAA bans the U.S. government from doing business with Huawei or compatriot peer ZTE Corp or from doing business with any company that has equipment from the two firms as a "substantial or essential component" of their system.

In its lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Texas, Huawei argues that the section in question is illegal because it could sharply limit the company's ability to do business in the United States despite no proof of wrongdoing.

The lawsuit also alleges that Huawei has been denied due process and that Congress, by stripping Huawei of commercial opportunities, has violated the "separation of powers" portion of the constitution by doing the work of the courts.

Some legal experts, however, said Huawei's lawsuit is likely to be dismissed because U.S. courts are reluctant to second-guess national security determinations by other branches of government.

The lawsuit "will be an uphill battle because Congress has broad authority to protect us from perceived national security threats," said Franklin Turner, a government contracts lawyer at McCarter & English.

In November 2018, a federal appeals court rejected a similar lawsuit filed by Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab, which was challenging a ban on the use of its software in U.S. government networks.

The Texas court hearing Huawei's case will not be bound by that decision, but will likely adopt its reasoning because of similarities in the two disputes, said Steven Schwinn, a professor at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago.

"I don't see how (Huawei) can really escape that result," said Schwinn.

Huawei's chief legal officer, Song Liuping, said the two cases were different in terms of evidence and scope, and that the Chinese firm's case had "full merits".

If a judge decides Huawei has a plausible claim the case will proceed to the discovery phase, in which internal documents are shared and U.S. government officials could be forced to provide testimony and lay out their security concerns.

The legal action compares with a more restrained response in December emphasising "trust in justice" after the arrest of CFO Sabrina Meng Wanzhou.

Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei later said Meng's arrest was politically motivated and "not acceptable".

Meng - Ren's daughter - is accused by the United States of bank and wire fraud related to breaches of trade sanctions against Iran. Canada approved extradition proceedings on March 1, but Meng has since sued Canada's government for procedural wrongs in her arrest. The next court hearing is set for May 8.

The case strained Canada's relations with China, which this week accused two arrested Canadians of stealing state secrets and blocked Canadian canola imports.

Meng is under house arrest in Vancouver. It is unclear where the two Canadians are being detained in China, and at least one does not have access to legal representation, sources previously told Reuters. </s> The US is reportedly urging governments and telecoms providers in allied countries to follow its lead and prevent the use of Huawei’s networking equipment in their mobile and fixed infrastructure.

A report in The Wall Street Journal claims US government officials have made contact with foreign counterparts and telecoms executives in several countries to discuss the security concerns it has about the Chinese company.

The site also suggests that Washington is considering an increase in financial aid for telecoms development in countries that avoid Huawei’s products. Countries in which the US has a military base, such as Germany, Italy and Japan, are of particular interest.
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Huawei has effectively been frozen out of the US market, although it does provide equipment to a number of smaller players in the country, while Australia has banned its operators from using Huawei equipment in their 5G rollouts on national security grounds.

The main basis for these fears is a perception that Huawei is linked to the Chinese government and that the use of the company’s equipment risks the possibility of backdoors that could be used for espionage.

Huawei has repeatedly denied such accusations, pointing out that it works with security agencies around the world and that it sells products to more than 500 operators in 170 countries without issue. This includes the UK, where BT, EE, Vodafone and Three are all customers.

“Huawei is surprised by the behaviours of the US government detailed in the article,” a Huawei spokesperson told TechRadar Pro. “If a government's behaviour extends beyond its jurisdiction, such activity should not be encouraged. Huawei firmly believes that our partners and customers will make the right choice based on their own judgment and experience of working with Huawei. We will continue to serve our global customers with our innovative solutions.”

There is little demand among operators for any barriers to the use of Huawei kit as this would reduce choice, hinder innovation and increase costs. Only this week, Huawei revealed it had shipped more than 10,000 5G base stations outside China and had signed 22 commercial 5G contracts with foreign operators.
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The United States urges their allies not to use Huawei network equipment, reportedly out of national security concerns.