The United States has urged a Middle Eastern nation to abandon plans to adopt Chinese telecommunications technology. Washington warned that the use of Beijing-backed systems by Syria could threaten U.S. national security and strategic interests.
According to three sources cited by Reuters, the warning was delivered during an unreported meeting between a U.S. State Department delegation and Syrian Communications Minister Abdulsalam Haykal in San Francisco on Tuesday.
During the meeting, U.S. officials reportedly pressed Syrian representatives to clarify their plans regarding Chinese telecom equipment as Damascus seeks to rebuild communications infrastructure devastated by more than a decade of war.
“The U.S. side asked for clarity on the ministry’s plans regarding Chinese telecom equipment,” one source briefed on the talks said.
Washington has been coordinating more closely with Damascus since 2024, when Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa came to power after ousting longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, whose government had maintained a strategic partnership with Beijing.
Rebuilding of telecom sector
A Syrian businessman involved in procurement discussions told Reuters Syria is currently exploring the possibility of procuring Chinese technology to support telecommunications towers and internet service providers.
However, Syrian officials indicated during the meeting that infrastructure projects were time-critical and that Damascus was seeking to diversify suppliers rather than rely on a single partner, according to another source familiar with the talks.
The country’s telecommunications sector has been severely damaged by 14 years of conflict, and the Syrian government is attempting to attract foreign investment to rebuild essential infrastructure.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia’s largest telecom operator, Saudi Telecom Company (STC), announced plans to invest $800 million to strengthen Syria’s telecommunications infrastructure.
The project includes a fibre-optic network extending more than 4,500 kilometres and is intended to improve regional and international connectivity.
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The U.S. warning reflects Washington’s broader concerns about Chinese telecommunications technology, which American officials have long argued could create security vulnerabilities.
Successive U.S. administrations have sought to limit the global expansion of Chinese telecom equipment makers, citing fears that such systems could be used for espionage or cyber operations.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration paused several planned restrictions targeting Chinese technology ahead of a scheduled meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in April, according to Reuters.
The postponed measures included a proposed ban on China Telecom’s U.S. operations, potential restrictions on Chinese equipment used in American data centers, and limits on TP-Link routers.
Washington also delayed potential restrictions on the U.S. internet businesses of China Unicom and China Mobile as part of efforts to avoid escalating tensions with Beijing following an earlier trade truce.
Shifting U.S. policy toward Syria
The telecommunications discussions between Washington and Damascus come as the United States adjusts its broader engagement with Syria following political changes in the country.
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On Thursday, the Trump administration urged the Supreme Court to allow it to end temporary protections for thousands of Syrians who have been living in the United States since the government’s brutal crackdown on protesters fifteen years ago.
The administration filed an emergency appeal at the high court, the first of 2026, asking the justices not only to end Temporary Protected Status for the Syrians but also to decide broader questions about the president’s power to make similar decisions in other cases.
“This application marks the third time that the government has been compelled to seek a stay from this court after lower courts have baselessly blocked the Secretary of Homeland Security’s determinations regarding Temporary Protected Status (TPS) just before they took effect,” the administration told the Supreme Court in its appeal.
Meanwhile, U.S. forces this week began withdrawing from some military positions in northeastern Syria, including the Qasrak base, where equipment and personnel have been relocated to Iraq’s Kurdish region.
Syrian and Iraqi security officials said the repositioning involved convoys of military vehicles and equipment crossing the border under helicopter escort.
American troops have also departed the al-Tanf base near the Syrian-Jordanian border after the transfer of thousands of suspected Islamic State militants from detention centers in Syria to prisons in Iraq.
The primary mission of U.S. forces in Syria has been to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State militants, who lost territorial control in 2019 but continue to carry out sporadic attacks.
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