US President Donald Trump warns Germany Huawei 5G deals will put intelligence sharing at risk
- Washington puts pressure on Berlin to ban Chinese telecoms company from its network days after accusing Huawei of intellectual property theft
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel is cautious on 5G policy, but Britain has agreed to open non-sensitive parts of its network to Huawei
The warning, announced by the US ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell, heightened tensions in US-German relations over Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ambivalence to a company that Washington described as a “Trojan horse” for Chinese intelligence services.
Trump “just called me from [Air Force One] and instructed me to make clear that any nation who chooses to use an untrustworthy 5G vendor will jeopardise our ability to share intelligence and information at the highest level,” Grenell wrote on Twitter on Sunday.
Similar pressure on the UK, however, did not stop the government from last month allowing Huawei a maximum of 35 per cent share in the non-sensitive parts of its 5G infrastructure, while US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo ruled out any changes to intelligence sharing between Washington and London.
The US president’s threat came as Germany considered how to proceed with its 5G plans. Merkel faces resistance from cabinet members on a proposal to let telecoms companies choose their 5G suppliers.