US blacklists tech giant Huawei
President Donald Trump has issued an executive order prohibiting the sale of telecom equipment from “foreign adversaries”, after which Chinese giant Huawei was put on a list of entities with whom American firms are prohibited from doing business.
The actions on Wednesday came amid an escalating US-China trade war. Trump’s executive order declared a “national emergency to deal with the threat posed by the unrestricted acquisition or use in the United States of information and communications technology or services designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of foreign adversaries.”
It did not name any entity and senior administration officials told reporters it was “company and country agnostic”.
Shortly after, the US department of commerce bureau of industry and security announced it was adding Huawei Technologies Co Ltd to its “Entity List” of companies that Americans are prohibited from doing business with. Huawei depends on American companies for chips for its equipment and its smartphones use Google’s Android operating system. Some US phone companies operating in rural areas have depended on cheap telecom equipment from Huawei. These transactions will be prohibited unless there are waivers.
The commerce department said the listing was based on an assessment that Huawei “is engaged in activities that are contrary to US national security or foreign policy interest”.
After the US move, China on Thursday urged Washington to stop “harassing overseas companies” and slammed Trump’s decision. “Nobody sees this move as constructive or friendly and we urge US to stop using such practices,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said.
Reacting to the US action, Huawei said: “Restricting Huawei from doing business in the US will not make the US more secure or stronger; instead, this will only serve to limit the US to inferior yet more expensive alternatives. In addition, unreasonable restrictions will infringe upon Huawei’s rights.”
CHINA FORMALLY ARRESTS 2 CANADIANS
China has formally arrested two Canadian citizens, apparently to keep up the pressure on Canada to release Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, bringing the two men closer to trial on vaguely defined state security charges.
Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have been arrested for allegedly stealing state secrets.