Trump envoy in heated row with British government over Huawei 5G deal as the White House warns London against working with the controversial Chinese tech giant
- US Ambassador Woody Johnson was briefed by Number 10 on the UK’s 5G plan
- Visitors to Downing Street witnessed the US envoy having a ‘heated discussion’
- The White House sent a delegation to Downing Street to discuss the Huawei deal
- A Whitehall source said ‘it’s Huawei or the highway before 2025’
Donald Trump’s London envoy left onlookers stunned after a heated row about Huawei spilled out into the lobby of 10 Downing Street.
Shocked visitors arriving through the famous black door saw billionaire US ambassador Woody Johnson locked in a ‘passionate and highly charged’ discussion with British officials.
Boris Johnson’s team have been left furious after a White House delegation flew to London to warn Britain not to let the controversial Chinese tech giant supply high-speed 5G internet infrastructure amid espionage fears.
US Ambassador Woody Johnson, pictured, was involved with a heated discussion with Whitehall officials at Downing Street over British government plans to outsource much of the country’s planned 5G mobile phone network to Chinese technology firm Huawei
Chinese technology firm Huawei is the front runner to receive the contract to build Britain’s high speed 5G mobile phone network despite fears over the firm’s links to the Beijing government
Mr Trump has warned Britain that intelligence sharing would be put at risk if Mr Johnson gave the green light for Huawei at a crunch meeting of his National Security Council this month.
But Mr Johnson has also been told that his manifesto commitment for superfast broadband for all by 2025 will be in tatters without Huawei, because no other commercial company has its technical advantage. A Whitehall source said: ‘It’s Huawei or the highway before 2025.’
Yesterday Government officials hit back at the US pressure, saying ‘we are very unimpressed by what they have been doing’.
A senior Government source accused the US of ‘repeatedly telling us what not to do but have no US solution to offer from Silicon Valley or anywhere else. We’ve asked on multiple occasions and all that’s come back is silence or shake of the head.’
The Mail on Sunday understands that the US Government is poised to suggest an alternative Western technological solution to avoid allies having to rely on Huawei, but the plan would take many years to become operational.
The Chinese firm last night issued a stark challenge to Mr Johnson, warning that he risks missing his manifesto commitment without its help. Vice-president Victor Zhang said: ‘British experts, including two parliamentary committees and the head of MI5, have looked at the evidence and concluded there is no justification for banning Huawei on cyber-security grounds.
‘We hope the Government agrees – so that our customers can keep the UK’s 5G roll-out on track and meet the Prime Minister’s promise of gigabit connectivity for all.’
It comes as it emerged millions of Britons in 70 towns and cities could lose internet access on their phones if the Government bans Huawei from the 5G network.
EE, Vodafone, O2 and Three have rolled out 5G using tens of thousands of Huawei masts.
The same masts are also being used for 4G connections, which means that if they have to be replaced, millions of smartphone users will lose their 4G internet for months or even years, the operators warned.