US State Secy Pompeo Declares Reliance Jio As 'Clean Telco' For Rejecting Chinese Huawei Equipment

Pompeo listed Jio among the "world's leading" telecom operators, stating that it was one of the "Clean Telcos" for spurning Huawei, which he slammed for being a part of the "Chinese Communist Party (CCP) infrastructure."

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has given a clean chit to Reliance Jio by listing the Indian telecommunication firm as a "clean" network based on the rationale that it does not use Chinese company Huawei's equipment, thereby keeping it safe from Beijing's intelligence intrusions. Pompeo listed Jio among the "world's leading" telecom operators, stating that it was one of the "Clean Telcos" for spurning Huawei, which he slammed for being  a part of the "Chinese Communist Party (CCP) infrastructure." Pompeo said that Jio along with some other Canadian, British and French telecoms was "disconnecting from the Chinese Communist Party infrastructure" by not using Huawei equipment. "The tide is turning toward trusted 5G vendors and away from Huawei. The world's leading telecom companies - Telefonica, Orange, Jio, Telstra, and many more-are becoming 'Clean Telcos'. They are rejecting doing business with tools of the CCP surveillance state, like Huawei," Pompeo said in a tweet.

The tide is turning toward trusted 5G vendors and away from Huawei. The world’s leading telecom companies—Telefonica, Orange, Jio, Telstra, and many more—are becoming “Clean Telcos.” They are rejecting doing business with tools of the CCP surveillance state, like Huawei.

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) June 24, 2020

"They are rejecting doing business with tools of the CCP surveillance state, companies like Huawei," he added while speaking to the media before the release of the State Department's annual terrorism report. Earlier in the year, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani had told American President Donald Trump during his February visit to India that Jio was the lone network in the world to not have a single Chinese component. Jio is reportedly trying the 'swadeshi' route for 5G and has applied to the Department of Telecommunications for permission to carry out lab tests for the technology without third-party participation. US social network giant Facebook announced a $5.7 billion investment in Jio in April. The US campaign against the Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer over fears its gear can be used for espionage has intensified as the company begins its push into the next-generation 5G networks. According to US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brian, Huawei is able to access sensitive and personal information wherever its equipment is installed and "by law, must comply with directives of the Chinese Communist Party" making networks using it vulnerable to Beijing's surveillance.