This archive report was first published on 18 July 2019.
On Tuesday, members of the US Senate and House of Representatives introduced legislation to maintain restrictions on Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, amidst concerns over President Donald Trump's decision to ease curbs on the Chinese firm.
The proposed bills would bar the removal of Huawei from the Commerce Department's trade blacklist without the approval of both the House and Senate, and allow Congress to disallow waivers granted to US companies doing business with the firm.
The US has accused Huawei of stealing American intellectual property and violating Iran sanctions. Republican Senator Tom Cotton, one of the sponsors of the bill, stated, "American companies shouldn't be in the business of selling our enemies the tools they'll use to spy on Americans."
Trump announced late last month that US companies would be allowed to sell products to Huawei, in an effort to revive trade talks with China.
The "Defending America's 5G Future Act" was introduced in the Senate by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, including Republicans Tom Cotton, Marco Rubio, and Mitt Romney, and Democrats Chris Van Hollen, Mark Warner, and Richard Blumenthal.
A companion bill was introduced in the House by Democratic Representatives Jimmy Panetta and Ruben Gallego, and Republicans Mark Gallagher and Liz Cheney.
Washington has also launched a lobbying effort to persuade US allies to keep Huawei out of next-generation 5G telecommunications infrastructure, citing concerns that the company could spy on customers. Huawei has denied these allegations.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang responded to the US legislation, stating that the US should immediately cease its "suppression" of Huawei, and that such actions "seriously damaged the United States' national image".
