This archive report was first published on 19 June 2020.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been speaking out against China's growing influence, warning Europeans to be cautious of its 'rogue actor' behavior.
Speaking publicly for the first time since meeting with a top Chinese official in Hawaii, Pompeo emphasized that the United States will not compromise its values to maintain economic ties with China.
"There's also no way to straddle these alternatives without abandoning who we are," Pompeo said in a videoconference with a forum in Denmark. "Democracies dependent on authoritarians are not worthy of the name."
During his speech, Pompeo renewed calls on Europeans to shun Chinese telecom giant Huawei, which he described as the arm of the communist 'surveillance state.'
He also criticized China's port investments in Greece and Spain, saying that Beijing is 'flagrantly attacking sovereignty' through these investments.
"We must take off the golden blinders of economic ties and see that the China challenge isn't just at the gates -- it's in every capital," Pompeo said.
"Every investment from a Chinese state-owned enterprise should be viewed with suspicion," he added.
