ZTE could face new US$1.3b fine: Trump

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that as a favour to China his administration was considering a fresh set of penalties on embattled Chinese company ZTE to replace crippling sanctions imposed last month that threatened to put the firm out of business.

ZTE could face a new fine of as much as US$1.3 billion (RM5.2 billion) as well as a management shakeup and strict new rules, Trump told reporters at the White House, although no deal has been finalised.

“As a favour to the president, I am absolutely taking a look at it,” he said, referring to Chinese President Xi Jingping.

Reports of a compromise on ZTE sparked immediate negative reaction on Capitol Hill, where top Republican and Democrat senators denounced it and one vowed to block it.

ZTE was fined US$1.2 billion in March 2017, but last month Washington banned the sale of crucial US components to the company after finding it had lied multiple times and failed to take actions against employees responsible for sanctions violations on Iran and North Korea.

Trump said the harsh sanctions on ZTE hurt US firms that supply components to make cell phones.

“When I looked at it, I said, you know, they can pay a big price without necessarily damaging all of these American companies,” he said.

“What I envision is a very large fine of more than US$1 billion. It could be US$1.3 billion. I envision new management, new board and very, very strict security rules.”

The reprieve for ZTE came just after Washington and Beijing on Saturday called a halt to a spiraling trade dispute sparked by US accusations of China’s unfair trade practices and the alleged theft of US technology, suspending plans to impose tariffs on as much as US$150 billion in Chinese imports. – AFP