Huawei Calls US Charges of Racketeering and Theft Unfounded and Unfair
In response to new charges brought by the US Department of Justice, Huawei said the indictment was not based on law enforcement, but was rather an attempt to cause irreversible damage to the company’s reputation and businesses for competitive reasons.
Earlier, a superseding indictment revealed three new charges against the Chinese tech giant, such as racketeering, conspiracy to steal trade secrets, and industrial espionage, bringing the total number of charges against Huawei by the US government to 16.
“The new unsubstantiated claims are based largely on civil disputes over the past two decades, which have either been settled, or gone through judicial proceedings, or dismissed by federal judges and juries,” Huawei said in a statement. “The allegations made by the US government will not be supported, and we will prove that they are unfounded and unfair.”
The company has denied earlier charges of committing bank fraud and violating US sanctions against Iran.
Notably, on the same day, the US Department of Commerce announced a 45-day extension of Huawei’s temporary license which was set to expire on Feb 16, allowing US companies to continue working with Huawei for a longer period. The extension is expected to prevent disruption of the current networks in rural areas and give carriers in those areas enough time to find replacement.
