China urges US to stop wrong actions against Huawei

Huawei has slammed the U.S. ban on the company s services as unreasonable and in violation of its rights.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday urged the United States to stop the wrong actions against Huawei Technologies, pledging necessary measures from the Chinese side to protect legitimate rights of Chinese enterprises.

The White House on Wednesday issued an executive order to ban foreign-made telecommunications equipment which Washington deemed as "posing an unacceptable risk."

The order did not single out any country or company, but after a fierce, protracted global pressure campaign to edge Chinese telecom giant Huawei out of the 5G market, the U.S. aim is clear.

Also on Wednesday, the U.S. Commerce Department said it put Huawei Technologies and its 70 affiliates on an "Entity List", which would restrict the sale or transfer of U.S. technologies to the company.

"China has stressed many times that the concept of national security should not be abused, and should not become a tool for trade protectionism. We hope that relevant country can respect market rules," said Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng, noting that the United States should create a fair, transparent, and predictable business environment for enterprises of all countries, including China.

Huawei has slammed the U.S. ban on the company s services as unreasonable and in violation of its rights.

The tech giant issued a statement hours after the U.S. president signed the executive order banning U.S. companies from using Huawei s 5G network. It said Trump s decision would only hinder development of 5G technology in the United States.

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The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that China will take further necessary measures to protect legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

"China resolutely opposes any country to impose unilateral sanctions against Chinese entities based on domestic laws, generalize the concept of national security, and abuse export control measures. China urges the United States to stop the wrong actions, create conditions for normal business and cooperation between enterprises of China and the United States, and avoid worsening the trade tensions. China will take further necessary measures to firmly protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.