US government asks allies to drop China’s Huawei

THE US government has initiated an extraordinary outreach campaign to foreign allies, trying to persuade wireless and Internet providers in these countries to avoid telecommunications equipment from China’s Huawei Technologies Co, according to sources.

American officials have briefed their government counterparts and telecom executives in friendly countries where Huawei equipment is already in wide use, including Germany, Italy and Japan, about what they see as cybersecurity risks. The United States is also considering increasing financial aid for telecommunications development in countries that shun Chinese-made equipment.