WASHINGTON — Italian officials on Thursday downplayed calls from U.S. counterparts to stop working with Chinese companies on next-generation “5G” wireless networks, saying they need to make sure they avoid missteps that would harm their economy or national security.

Roberto Baldoni, director of the Italian Cybersecurity Management Board, said his country’s cybersecurity’s strategy will account for “monitoring of devices” that may be used by foreign governments to spy on European citizens. He made his remarks at a joint conference on cybersecurity between Italy and the United States.

The Trump administration is pressuring European governments to take a hostile stance on Chinese telecommunications giants, including ZTE and Huawei, over concerns the companies could allow the Chinese government to spy on foreign citizens. Italy denied reports last month that it was set to ban ZTE and Huawei from developing the country’s 5G network.

U.S. officials continued to express wariness. Allowing Chinese companies to build 5G networks could threaten U.S. national security, said Robert Strayer, the State Department’s deputy assistant secretary of cyber and international communications policy.

“Even one line of code that’s malicious could disrupt or cause manipulation in the way certain infrastructures operate,” said Strayer, giving the example of a steel factory that could have its production reduced by hard-to-detect code.

Baldoni didn’t seem enthusiastic about an audience member’s suggestion of using cyber attacks of its own to retaliate. “Offense can have very bad side effects or collateral damage,” Baldoni said. “When you use a cyber weapon, you never know what will be the side effect.”

Brig. Gen. Francesco Vestito, commander of the Italian Joint Command for Cyber Operations, said Italy’s ability in responding to cyber attacks is constrained by the country’s legal system.

“Everyone thinks you can just react to whatever you do online,” Vestito said. “What we probably need to do now is try to lay down a framework in understanding what is a criminal act or what is an act of war, which allows the NATO alliance to respond properly.”