US to discuss BlackBerry with UAE

Washington: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday the United States and the United Arab Emirates will hold talks on BlackBerry use as she moved to ease a row over a UAE block on messaging services.

"We are taking time to consult and analyse the full range of interests and issues at stake because we know that there is a legitimate security concern," Clinton told reporters.

Right to access

"But there is also a legitimate right of free use and access. So I think we will be pursuing both technical and expert discussions as we go forward," the chief US diplomat said.

Clinton's spokesman Philip Crowley on Monday criticised the decision by the UAE to halt key BlackBerry messaging services, saying it "set a dangerous precedent" in limiting basic freedoms and rights.

The UAE said Sunday it will halt key BlackBerry services that breach laws and raise security concerns from October 11.

Yousuf Al Otaiba, the UAE ambassador to Washington, issued a quick rebuke to Crowley's remarks.

"The State Department's comments ... on the UAE's announcement to suspend certain BlackBerry services from October 11 are disappointing and contradict the US government's own approach to telecommunications regulation," he said.