Huawei must never cede to US pressures

The US Department of Justice laid 23 criminal charges against Huawei on Monday and filed a formal extradition request with Canada for Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou.

Boiling the 23 accusations down to two cases, the US Justice Department alleges that Huawei’s subsidiary violated US sanctions on Iran by doing business with Tehran and committed fraud by misleading banks about the business, and also charges that Huawei stole robotic technology from T-Mobile US Inc.

Huawei rejected the first charge in a statement on Tuesday. With regard to the latter case, Huawei has said “the two companies settled their disputes in 2017,” according to Reuters.

The formal prosecution is part of US suppression of Huawei on a global scale. Washington is pushing its allies hard to exclude Huawei equipment from their 5G networks. The US has never cracked down on a foreign high-tech enterprise with its national resources on such a large scale. The New York Times reported on Saturday the Trump  administration contends that “the world is engaged in a new arms race” and “whichever country dominates 5G will gain an economic, intelligence and military edge for much of this century.”

The US is hysterically persecuting high-tech companies like Huawei. This is beyond China’s expectations and has shocked the global business community. It seems that the US has made the strategic determination to crack down on Huawei. It doesn’t care about the impact it will have on international rules or the consequences.

As the most powerful country in the world, the US is adept at seeking geopolitical interests under a legal pretext. There is no power in the world that can effectively restrict it. Ever since Washington began to recklessly pursue “America First,” its international relations have entered a difficult time.

Huawei is confronted by a great test. Chinese high-tech enterprises have become the biggest victims of US containment of China’s rise. Such suffering has plagued Huawei, but it need not be afraid.

Washington is playing political tricks under a legal pretext. The press conference on Monday which announced charges against Huawei held by the Justice Department was attended by the US commerce secretary, FBI director, homeland security secretary and other senior officials. Does Washington really need such a lineup to deal with an alleged “criminal” foreign enterprise?

Washington has used a ban on microchip exports to punish Chinese companies. But it’s not that simple to suppress Huawei because the company has many intellectual property rights and a broad cross licensing deal with major US companies. It is hard to exclude Huawei from the telecommunications industry or construction of the 5G network. Huawei’s own technologies have protected it from US suppression.

It won’t be easy for the US to convict Huawei. The company can start a court confrontation with the US government using legal means. We hope that Huawei won’t be nervous or discouraged. It should stay calm under the US crackdown, and try to minimize losses.

The Chinese government and society should provide Huawei with all kinds of support. The government should promote negotiation with the US, and try to restrict Washington from treating Huawei unfairly. Society should encourage Huawei to remain calm and strong. It will be a setback for China’s rise if Huawei, a high-tech giant among Chinese private enterprises, collapses under US pressure.

Huawei and company president Ren Zhengfei, please don’t give up. The Chinese people support you and so does the world’s silent majority. Good always prevails over evil, and the Huawei case is no exception.