U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Downing Street for talks on a range of China-related issues on Tuesday.
Pompeo is in London for a two-day visit, during which he will also have talks with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.
The Chinese regime’s National Security Law for Hong Kong and Chinese telecom firm Huawei’s role in 5G networks are high on the agenda of the talks.
Johnson initially favoured a limited role for Huawei in Britain’s 5G networks, but reversed the decision on July 14 due to pressure from the United States and his own backbench Conservative members of Parliament.
“Allowing untrusted, high-risk vendors, such as Huawei, into any part of 5G networks makes critical systems vulnerable to disruption, manipulation, and espionage, and puts sensitive government, commercial, and personal information at risk,” the State Department said.
“We will continue to work with the UK on fostering a secure and vibrant 5G ecosystem, which is critical to Transatlantic prosperity and security.”
The State Department also hailed the UK’s role as “a global leader and our close partner in promoting and protecting human rights.”
“We welcome the UK’s recent decision to grant British Nationals Overseas the right to work and eventually apply for citizenship in the UK,” State Department said.
The national security law criminalizes individuals for any acts of subversion, secession, and collusion with foreign forces against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Johnson has said that the law “constitutes a clear and serious breach of the Sino–British Joint Declaration,” as it “violates Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy and is in direct conflict with Hong Kong basic law.”
