Boris Johnson defies Trump and gives Huawei the green light to develop Britain's 5G network – Business Insider, Business Insider

                      

• Boris Johnson gives the green light to Huawei to develop the UK’s 5G network.
• The UK government has defied the US to give Chinese company a role in improving the UK’s digital infrastructure.
• Donald Trump’s administration has urged the UK government not to do a deal with Huawei.
• The US believes it will give Chinese intelligence services a backdoor into Britain.
• The UK government announces measures to limit Huawei’s role and restrict its access to “sensitive” parts of the network.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories .

Boris Johnson has defied Donald Trump’s US administration and granted permission to Chinese telecoms company Huawei a role in developing Britain’s 5G network.

The UK government said in a written statement on Tuesday that it had decided to give Huawei a major role in building the country 5G network, despite warnings about potential threats to security.

However, in a statement, the UK’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport said that Huawei would be excluded from the network’s “core” functions, with the company restricted to operating just % of the overall network.

The company will also be excluded from operating “sensitive” parts of the UK’s communications network, including “nuclear sites and military bases.”

“We want world-class connectivity as soon as possible but this must not be at the expense of our national security,” Digital Secretary Baroness Morgan said.

“High-risk vendors never have been and never will be in our most sensitive networks.”

In a statement, Huawei welcomed Downing Street’s “evidence-based” decision to allow the firm to continue its rollout of the 5G network.

“Huawei Is reassured by the UK government confirmation that we can continue working with our customers to keep the 5G roll-out on track, “Victor Zhang, Huawei’s vice-president, said.

“This evidence-based decision will result in a more advanced, more secure and more cost-effective telecoms infrastructure that is fit for the future.”

The US strongly opposed the UK allowing Huawei to develop its infrastructure because it believes doing so will give Chinese state intelligence services a backdoor into Britain, and put UK-US intelligence sharing at risk.

Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, who is due to visit London this week, Sunday warned Prime Minister Johnson that he faced a “momentous” decision on whether to freeze the telecoms giant out of new UK infrastructure.

Pompeo endorsed a tweet from Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat, who warned that allowing Huawei into such a critical part of infrastructure could have a “real cost” and undermine the UK’s sovereignty.

Tugendhat is one of several MPs in Johnson’s own Conservative party who have expressed concern about Huawei.

However, the prime minister has opted to go ahead with plans to let the Chinese company develop Britain’s 5G network, as part of his agenda of “leveling up” regions across the country through improved infrastructure.

The UK government has been advised by security services that a deal with Huawei would not put intelligence at risk.

The government is set to make a House of Commons statement on the decision later on Tuesday.

Trump’s Huawei threats had ‘irritated’ Boris Johnson

     

                           Dan Kitwood / Getty Images)                   

The Times newspaper . reported on Monday that the repeated threats from Trump and his allies had “irritated” Johnson’s administration, with Johnson calling on critics to put forward an alternative for developing UK 5G.

Asked earlier this month whether he would allow the Huawei deal to go ahead, the prime minister told the BBC that “the British public deserves access to the best possible technology.”

He added: “If people oppose one brand or another they have to tell us what’s the alternative?”

This disagreement between London and Washington comes just weeks before the two sides sit down to negotiate a post-Brexit free trade deal.

US Congressman Mike Gallagher told the BBC that letting Huawei develop its 5G network would thwart the UK’s chances of a comprehensive free trade agreement with the US.

“Regardless of who wins the White House in 01575879, I think it would make it very difficult – if not impossible – to reach that gold-standard trade agreement which we all want, “he said.