US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper warns of Huawei threat to NATO

US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper warned that Beijing is moving further outside the international order and that allies using Chinese technology risk undermining NATO.

Under the leadership of Xi Jinping, China “is heading even faster and further in the wrong direction —more internal repression, more predatory economic practices, more heavy-handedness, and, most concerning for me, a more aggressive military posture,” Esper said at the Munich Security Conference Saturday.

Esper and Secretary of State Michael Pompeo dialed up the rhetoric on China after a more junior official said on Friday that there was no threat of retribution against allies that used equipment from Huawei Technologies.

The US has warned that partners using Huawei hardware in their 5G telecommunications networks could put military and intelligence relationships at risk because of the danger of Beijing accessing their communications.

“If you don’t understand the threat and we don’t do something about it, at the end of the day, it could compromise what is the most successful military alliance in history: NATO,” Esper said.

The US and China have been locked in a trade war during the administration of President Donald Trump and are competing for economic influence and military advantage in the Asia-Pacific region.