U.S. sanctions on Huawei and other Chinese tech firms restrict bank access

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers have introduced a bill that would impose more sanctions on Huawei and other Chinese 5G companies and restrict these companies from accessing U.S. banks.

The new bill which is introduced by Republican senator Tom Cotton and backed by lawmakers such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer aims to "severely sanction" Huawei and other Chinese 5G producers that engage in economic espionage against the U.S.

In a statement on Tuesday, senator Tom Cotton said:

"We've made great strides in recent years at home and abroad in combating Huawei's malign attempts to dominate 5G and steal Americans' data. We cannot allow Huawei and the Chinese Communist Party to have access to Americans' personal data and our country's most sensitive defense systems."

 

According to the bill, these companies would be added to the Treasury Department's Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) List, effectively freezing them out of the U.S. financial system. The bill seeks to punish these "untrustworthy" Chinese companies for their actions against the U.S.

The ban of Huawei from buying any material from U.S. suppliers marked the start of the 'trade war' between the U.S. and China back in 2019. In the past, U.S. lawmakers have attempted to limit Huawei's access to U.S. banks, including by proposing a similar bill in 2020 during former President Donald Trump's time in office.

China's Foreign Ministry has criticized the U.S. for "generalizing the concept of national security" and "abusing state power to suppress Chinese enterprises" in response to the introduction of the bill.

Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry, stated to Reuters that China will "firmly safeguard" the rights and interests of Chinese companies in response to the proposed legislation.

The United States is not the only country that has restricted Huawei products. The U.K. banned the installation of Huawei equipments and from outsourcing service management from the Chinese company last year.

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