Huawei will commit to ‘no-spy agreements’ to win government contracts, chairman says amid US pressure on allies over 5G fears
- Concession comes as US presses its allies not to include Huawei as they build their 5G networks
- US State Department official confirms Washington continues to regard Huawei a national security risk: ‘We have to protect our information’
Huawei Technologies is prepared to include provisions in its government contracts not to facilitate “back door” espionage by Beijing, the chairman of the Chinese telecommunications giant said on Tuesday.
“We are willing to sign no-spy agreements with governments, including the UK government, to commit ourselves to making our equipment meet the no-spy, no-back-doors standard,” Liang Hua said at a company-sponsored business conference in London.
The concession from the smartphone maker comes as the US seeks commitments from its allies to not use Huawei as they build their next-generation 5G telecommunications infrastructure.
Washington, which has already banned the use of Huawei devices by its own governmental agencies, claims that the company is a national security risk because it might accede to demands from Beijing to allow access to networks and private users’ data.
Huawei’s founder and CEO, Ren Zhengfei, has vociferously pushed back against accusations that the company has installed back doors, and, according to Tim Watkins, Huawei’s vice-president for western Europe, has vowed to close the company should the Chinese government insist that it hand over user data.
“[Ren] has made it very clear that he has never been asked to hand over any customer data or any information,” Watkins told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Tuesday.