Lawmakers dismiss Chinese threat to US tech companies
Lawmakers are dismissing China’s threat to retaliate against U.S. technology companies and vowing not to back down on limiting the use of Chinese telecom products from Huawei and ZTE, which they see as a threat to national security.
Beijing has reportedly ordered government agencies in the country to remove all foreign hardware and software from their systems within three years, in what is seen as a shot at the U.S. The order comes after bipartisan efforts on Capitol Hill and from federal agencies to crack down on the use of Chinese products, the latest tit-for-tat in a technology fight and broader trade war.
Congress reacts: But lawmakers on Capitol Hill who spoke to The Hill insisted they would not be rattled and would push ahead with a tough approach to Chinese technology, even at the risk of blowback for American firms.
“I think they want Huawei to infiltrate our security system, and they are probably outraged, that is their response,” Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, told The Hill. “But we shouldn’t be worried about it, because we can’t have them spying on us.”
“They are clearly just finding a way to retaliate,” Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), a co-chair of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, told The Hill. “This is not really a trade dispute, this is a national security dispute.”
The context: Reports on the Chinese order to bar government use of U.S. technology come at a sensitive time in the broader ongoing trade talks between the two countries.
President Trump has touted the completion of a “phase one” trade deal to avoid another round of devastating tariffs. But Trump has also said that could be delayed until the new year. The next round of talks over “phase two,” are likely to be more contentious, with negotiators taking up cyber espionage issues, such as theft of intellectual property. Huawei has been viewed as a potential sticking point that could hold up agreeing to that trade deal.
Despite these issues, some lawmakers insisted they are not worried about the Chinese order, and on Tuesday advocated for staying focused on the potential threats from Huawei to U.S. companies.
“If Huawei wants to be a worldwide telecommunications company, that would be great, but they can’t also be an agent of the Chinese government, and that’s the fundamental problem that we have here, and to construe it as a trade dispute isn’t really accurate, I mean they can treat it that way, but that’s not what it is,” King said.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), a key advocate on tech privacy issues, told reporters that the Chinese order was just part of an “ongoing” confrontation with China.
