Countries purchasing Huawei’s 5G wireless technology risk buying into a “China-only” telecommunications industry that lacks access to Western innovations, according to U.S. officials.

“These networks are not going to be up for two to three years; the stuff they’re buying now will be outdated by then,” said Adam Boehler, who leads the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation. “You’re essentially locking yourself into an outdated technology immediately. And so you’ve given up your national security for something that’s going to weigh you down in infrastructure that is obsolete by the time it’s operational.”