Trump ramps up battle against Chinese telecom giant Huawei

Donald Trump stepped up his battle against Huawei Wednesday, effectively barring the Chinese telecom giant from the US market and adding it to a blacklist restricting US sales to the firm amid an escalating trade war with Beijing.

An executive order signed by the president prohibits purchase or use of equipment from companies that pose "an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of United States persons."

"This administration will do what it takes to keep America safe and prosperous and to protect America from foreign adversaries," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said.

A senior White House official insisted that no particular country or company was targeted in the "company- and country-agnostic" declaration.

However, the measure -- announced just as a US-China trade war deepens -- is widely seen as prompted by already deep concerns over an alleged spying threat from Huawei.

"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," Huawei said in a statement.

"In addition, unreasonable restrictions will infringe upon Huawei's rights and raise other serious legal issues," it said.

The Commerce Department followed up with a more direct hit on the tech giant, adding it to a blacklist that will make it much harder for the firm to use crucial US components in its array of phones, telecom gear, databases and other electronics.

Canada has also been dragged into the spat as it arrested a Huawei executive on a US extradition warrant related to Iran sanctions violations in December.

In what is seen as retaliation from Beijing, a former Canadian diplomat, Michael Kovrig, and a businessman, Michael Spavor, were detained on national security grounds, with Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper reporting Thursday that they have now been formally arrested.

- 'RIP Huawei' -

Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) said it would add Huawei and its affiliates to its "entity list" over alleged Iran sanctions violations.

The listing requires US firms to get a license from BIS for the sale or transfer of American technology to a company or person on the list.

"A license may be denied if the sale or transfer would harm US national security or foreign policy interests," a Commerce Department statement said.

"This will prevent American technology from being used by foreign-owned entities in ways that potentially undermine US national security or foreign policy interests," Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said.

US Senator Tom Cotton, from Trump's Republican Party, tweeted: "@Huawei 5G, RIP. Thanks for playing."

Huawei did not immediately comment on the blacklisting.

US officials have been trying to persuade allies not to allow China a role in building next-generation 5G mobile networks, warning that doing so would result in restrictions on sharing of information with the United States.

US government agencies are already banned from buying equipment from Huawei, a rapidly expanding leader in the 5G technology.

Beijing was already furious about US moves to limit use of equipment from Chinese firms including Huawei and another company ZTE.

"For some time, the United States has abused its national power to deliberately discredit and suppress by any means specific Chinese enterprises, which is neither honorable nor fair," foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said ahead of Trump's executive order.

"We urge the US side to stop the unreasonable suppression of Chinese enterprises on the pretext of national security and to provide a fair and non-discriminatory environment," the spokesman said.

- Trojan horse -

The US portrayal of Huawei as a national security danger dovetails with Washington's wider complaint that Chinese companies are unfairly protected by the state, making fair trade impossible.

The move also threatens to further flare trade tensions just days after the US more than doubled tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports, which was met with a retaliation in kind by Beijing.

Washington and some European allies fear that Chinese economic expansion, particularly in the Belt and Road global infrastructure program, is part of a bid for geopolitical dominance.

Amid those worries, Huawei is portrayed as a Trojan horse that could leverage its ultra-rapid telecoms technology into a Chinese government spy network reaching deep into American society and business fields.

"Chinese telecom companies like Huawei effectively serve as an intelligence-gathering arm of the Chinese Communist Party," Senator Cotton said after Trump's emergency declaration.

"The administration is right to restrict the use of their products."

So far, the US campaign to lobby other countries to turn their backs on Huawei has had mixed results.

Even Britain, one of Washington's closest allies, is mired in debate over whether to follow the US lead or allow Huawei to develop the 5G networks.

On Tuesday, the chairman of the company, Liang Hua, visited London to insist that Huawei will "commit ourselves, to commit our equipment to meeting the no-spy, no back-door standards."

Huawei will not bow to US pressure: founder
Beijing (AFP) May 19, 2019 - Chinese telecoms giant Huawei is ready to deal with Washington's crackdown and will reduce its reliance on US components, its founder told Japanese media.

President Donald Trump effectively barred Huawei from the US market on Wednesday and added it to a list which would restrict US sales to the firm amid an escalating trade war with Beijing.

"We have already been preparing for this," Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei told a group of Japanese journalists Saturday in his first interview since Trump's move.

Ren said Huawei would continue to develop its own components to reduce its dependence on outside suppliers.

Huawei is a rapidly expanding leader in 5G technology but remains dependent on foreign suppliers.

It buys about $67 billion worth of components each year, including about $11 billion from US suppliers, according to The Nikkei business daily.

The usually elusive Ren, 74, has come out of the shadows in recent months in the face of increasing pressure on his company.

Ren's army background and Huawei's opaque culture have fuelled suspicions in some countries that the firm has links with the Chinese military and intelligence services.

Huawei is also the target of an intense campaign by Washington, which has been trying to persuade allies not to allow China a role in building next-generation 5G mobile networks.

US government agencies are already banned from buying equipment from Huawei.

"We have not done anything which violates the law," Ren said, adding the US measures would have a limited impact.

"It is expected that Huawei's growth may slow, but only slightly," he said, according The Nikkei.

A former army technician, Ren founded Huawei in 1987 with only $5,000, according to company lore.

Huawei now claims to have nearly 190,000 employees, operates in 170 countries, and reported revenue of more than $100 billion in 2018.

Ren said his company would not yield to pressure from Washington.

"We will not change our management at the request of the US or accept monitoring, as ZTE has done," he said, as quoted by The Nikkei, referring to fellow Chinese telecoms giant ZTE which was also targeted by Washington.

ZTE came close to collapse last year after US firms were banned from selling it vital components over its continued dealings with Iran and North Korea.

Trump later reversed the decision and in return ZTE had to pay a $1 billion fine and accept monitoring by the US Commerce Department.

Google and Android system start to cut ties with Huawei
San Francisco (AFP) May 20, 2019 - US internet giant Google, whose Android mobile operating system powers most of the world's smartphones, said it was beginning to cut ties with China's Huawei, which Washington considers a national security threat.

The move could have dramatic implications for Huawei smartphone users, as the telecoms giant will no longer have access to Google's proprietary services -- which include the Gmail and Google Maps apps -- a source close to the matter told AFP.

In the midst of a trade war with Beijing, President Donald Trump has barred US companies from engaging in telecommunications trade with foreign companies said to threaten American national security.

The measure targets Huawei, the world's second-biggest smartphone maker, which has been listed by the US Commerce Department among firms that American companies can only engage with in trade after obtaining the green light from the authorities.

The ban includes technology sharing.

"We are complying with the order and reviewing the implications," a Google spokesperson told AFP.

"For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices."

Google, like all tech companies, collaborates directly with smartphone makers to ensure its systems are compatible with their devices.

Due to the ban, Google will now have to halt business activities with Huawei that involve direct transfer of hardware, software and technical services that are not publicly available -- meaning Huawei will only be able to use the open source version of Android, the source told AFP.

Google apps such as Gmail and Maps should remain functional on Huawei phones at least initially, another source told AFP.

But while the ban on technology sharing is in place, Huawei will be required to manually access any updates or software patches from Android Open Source Project -- the code accessible to all outside programmers -- and also to distribute the updates to users itself.

A person familiar with the matter who requested anonymity told Bloomberg News Huawei that will be unable to offer Google's proprietary apps and services in the future.

Huawei did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

- 5G leader -

Huawei is a rapidly expanding leader in 5G technology, and its smartphones outsold Apple's iPhones in the first quarter of this year, seizing the California company's second-place spot in a tightening smartphone market dominated by Samsung.

But the Chinese firm remains dependent on foreign suppliers.

It buys about $67 billion worth of components each year, including about $11 billion from US suppliers, according to The Nikkei business daily.

Huawei is the target of an intense campaign by Washington, which has been trying to persuade allies not to allow China a role in building next-generation 5G mobile networks.

US government agencies are already banned from buying equipment from Huawei.

Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei said Saturday that "We have not done anything which violates the law," adding the US measures would have a limited impact.

Ren's army background and Huawei's opaque culture have fueled suspicions in some countries that the firm has links with the Chinese military and intelligence services

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