US to hold talks with UAE over BlackBerry dispute

Washington, August 6 (ANI): US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said that United States and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) would hold talks on BlackBerry use and ease the dispute regarding the UAE ban on key services.

The BBC quoted Clinton as saying, "the authorities had to balance "legitimate security concerns" with "right of free use and access".

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

Clinton'c worry was highlighted after the United Arab Emirates expressed its intention to prevent the phones sending e-mails, accessing the internet, and delivering instant messages.

Saudi Arabia has said it intends to ban Blackberry-to-Blackberry instant messaging service from August 6, whilst Lebanon has said it will assess the device.

The UAE Telecoms Regulatory Authority has said in a statement that Blackberry services are "currently the only data services operating in the UAE where data is immediately exported off-shore, where it is managed by a foreign, commercial organisation".

"In their current form, certain Blackberry services allow users to act without any legal accountability, causing judicial, social and national security concerns for the UAE," it added. (ANI)