Senior diplomats speak out for Huawei

Source: Xinhua | 2019-01-29

Senior Chinese diplomats in Europe have recently slammed the “groundless” accusation against Chinese telecommunication giant Huawei, stressing that Huawei does not pose any threat to any country.

A signed piece by Liu Xiaoming, Chinese ambassador to Britain, was published Saturday on The Telegraph with the title “Don’t listen to the scaremongers — Huawei is not a security threat to Britain.”

And Zhang Ming, head of the Chinese Mission to the European Union, told The Financial Times that “someone is sparing no effort to fabricate a security story of Huawei,” and this goes against free and fair competition.

In the article, Liu noted the “needless anxiety” over and “a ban in some countries” on companies such as Huawei.

“If left unchecked, they could disrupt market rules, undermine company confidence, poison business cooperation, and cause uncertainties and instabilities in the world economy,” he wrote.

The senior diplomat said Huawei UK has made an important contribution to the economic and social progress of its host country over the past five years by bringing 2 billion pounds (US$2.6 billion) to Britain through investment and procurement and creating 7,500 jobs, making a name for itself as a provider of high-quality products and services.

In its cooperation with British partners, he wrote, Huawei has expanded its global reach and adapted to international standards. And Huawei has much to contribute to the long-term development of Britain’s telecommunications industry.

According to the edited transcript of an interview with The Financial Times provided by the Chinese Mission to the EU on Sunday night, Zhang said he does not think the security story of Huawei “has anything to do with security, and the so-called security concerns are not supported by any fact or evidence.”

“Rather I believe that it is an act of protectionism with a political sense. That indicates a push-back against globalization,” Zhang said.