US wants foreign govts ‘to follow Germany’ in adopting stricter 5G security rules

Washington wants foreign governments to follow Germany in adopting stricter security standards for next-generation 5G telecoms networks, a US cybersecurity official said on Wednesday. This strategy would effectively rule out the use of Chinese equipment vendors, according to Robert Strayer, deputy assistant secretary for cyber, international communications and information policy at the US State Department. Berlin last month set tougher criteria for vendors supplying network equipment, stopping short of singling out China’s Huawei for special treatment and instead saying the same rules should apply to all vendors. The German decision was seen as a blow to the US, which has led efforts to get Western governments to ban market-leader Huawei over spying allegations. However, Strayer said Washington approved of the German move, Reuters reported. Huawei has repeatedly denied the claims.