Huawei has urged the US government to end its “unjust treatment” of the Chinese technology giant after it was granted an extension to a temporary trade licence in the country.
The phone maker has been the subject of restrictions in the US over allegations of close ties to the Chinese state.
Critics have argued that Huawei’s telecoms equipment could be used to spy on people in the West — something Huawei has always denied, insisting it abides by the laws of each country in which it operates.
In a statement responding to the US decision, Huawei said: “Extending the temporary general licence won’t have a substantial impact on Huawei’s business either way. This decision does not change the fact that Huawei continues to be treated unfairly either.”
The restrictions saw the Chinese manufacturer placed on the Entity List, effectively banning it from trading with US firms. A temporary licence was subsequently issued to allow for some trade to help maintain existing products.
However, since the restrictions were introduced in May, Huawei has been unable to release new phones using Google apps and, as a result, its Mate 30 series of phones – unveiled in September – has not been released in markets including South Africa.
‘Significant economic harm’
“We have long held that the decision by the US department of commerce to add Huawei to the Entity List has caused more harm to the US than to Huawei,” the company’s statement said.
“This has done significant economic harm to the American companies with which Huawei does business, and has already disrupted collaboration and undermined the mutual trust on which the global supply chain depends.
“We call on the US government to put an end to this unjust treatment and remove Huawei from the Entity List.”
Since the introduction of the restrictions, the company has also only so far launched its foldable Mate X smartphone in China despite initially planning a global launch. The device has now been released using Huawei’s own processor chips and other apps instead of Google services.