Huawei Technologies Co. denounced U.S. actions against the company as "bullying" and implored European governments to resist American pressure to follow suit in a bid to safeguard one of its most lucrative markets.
The telecom equipment giant also took its counteroffensive directly to European consumers Tuesday, launching a marquee phone, the Honor 20 -- the latest device in a lower-priced Huawei -owned line aimed at younger users. The slick, Silicon Valley -like debut in London was planned well before the U.S. decision to restrict exports to Huawei . Still, the venue highlighted how Europe has become a central battlefield in the fight between the U.S. and the company.
Europe is one of Huawei's most important international markets. Although the company has long faced resistance in the U.S., many European countries -- including U.S. allies -- have embraced Huawei telecom gear, while consumers have snapped up its smartphones.
Europe , along with the Middle East and Africa , generated 28% of Huawei's $107 billion in revenue last year and was the company's fastest-growing region.
In Brussels , Abraham Liu , Huawei's vice president for the European region, told reporters Tuesday the Trump administration's move to blacklist Huawei marks an "unprecedented" assault on not only the Chinese tech firm, but also rules-based global trade. "Now it is happening to Huawei . Tomorrow it can happen to any other international company," Mr. Liu said at a press briefing. "This is dangerous."
Huawei's push to enlist the European Union as an ally follows White House pressure on EU governments to block Huawei from the rollout of 5G, the latest generation of mobile-phone and computing networks. The U.S. accuses Huawei of being vulnerable to Beijing requests to spy on or disrupt foreign networks. Huawei said it isn't beholden to the Chinese government and would never spy on behalf of another government.
Washington moved to block Huawei from sourcing components from U.S. companies. That step threatens to hamper Huawei's global smartphone business, too. It would restrict certain features that run on Google's Android operating system, which powers Huawei phones around the world. U.S. officials said Monday they would waive that measure for 90 days for some suppliers, including Alphabet Inc.'s Google .
European telecom companies -- which have used Huawei gear in their networks and often also sell Huawei smartphones -- have so far stuck by the company. Vodafone Group PLC and BT Group PLC , two big U.K. carriers, have publicly said they want to continue using Huawei gear in their 5G networks.
The British government is in the middle of a review of its telecom-gear market, but officials have signaled it will allow carriers to use Huawei gear except in a network's most sensitive areas.
Mr. Liu told reporters in Brussels that Huawei was willing to sign no-spy agreements with all governments and customers in the EU to assuage any security concerns. Huawei discussed the no-spy accord in recent weeks with several EU governments, according to a person familiar with the issue. The company's 5G rollout won't be delayed by recent developments, Mr. Liu said.
Highlighting its global supply chains and operations, the Shenzhen -based company cited more than $6 billion in annual purchases from Europe , vast research collaboration and a local workforce. About 70% of Huawei staff in the region are European.
The EU is treading carefully, however, mindful of trans-Atlantic tensions and trying to avoid getting caught up in the U.S.- China trade fight. Brussels and Washington are also locked in contentious trade negotiations, even as they jointly try to address what they see as challenges posed by Beijing's state capitalism.
European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel , have been reluctant to join the U.S. effort to isolate Huawei from Western markets.
Huawei's comments follow a tumultuous few days, as the Chinese giant scrambles to assess the impact of last week's action by the U.S. Commerce Department adding it to a trade blacklist that threatens to cut if off from American technology.
Last year Huawei bought $11 billion worth of American components such as semiconductors.
The decision was followed Monday by a U.S. order giving some suppliers a 90-day reprieve to the trade rules. The reprieve allows Google to continue providing certain key services to Huawei smartphone users. It also allows other U.S. businesses to continue selling some components to the company.
"Keeping phones up-to-date and secure is in everyone's best interests and this temporary license allows us to continue to provide software updates and security patches to existing models for the next 90 days," a Google spokesman said Tuesday.
Beyond the 90-day reprieve, the U.S. has indicated it doesn't plan to give many licenses to companies wishing to continue selling to Huawei .
Mr. Liu said it isn't yet clear when Huawei's own operating system will be ready for an international rollout. That poses a potential risk to the company's next line of smartphones, which may have more limited access to Google's Android.
"Obviously there is a challenge here," Mr. Liu said.
AI
