U.S. won't partner with countries that use Huawei systems - U.S.'s Pompeo

Reuters
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo listens during the news conference in Reykjavik, Iceland February 15, 2019. REUTERS/Geirix

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday warned that the United States would not be able to partner with or share information with countries that adopt Huawei Technologies Co Ltd systems, citing security concerns.

In an interview on Fox Business Network, Pompeo said nations in Europe and elsewhere need to understand the risks of implementing Huawei's telecommunications equipment and that when they did, they would ultimately not use the company's systems.

"If a country adopts this and puts it in some of their critical information systems, we won't be able to share information with them, we won't be able to work alongside them," Pompeo said.

"We're not going to put American information at risk," he added.

Asked about European nations pushing back on U.S. calls to ban Huawei, Pompeo said the United States has been talking to other nations to make sure they "understand the risk of putting this Huawei technology into their IT systems" and that "they'll make good decisions when they understand that risk."

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Makini Brice; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)