Huawei says it has been treated unfairly by the US government and has filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn a ban on its equipment.
On Wednesday, the Chinese telecommunications company appeared in the federal district court in Eastern Texas to request a permanent injunction against the ban.
Huawei is also asking the court for a declaratory judgment that the ban is unconstitutional.
The United States has restricted Huawei amid concerns that the company could be subject to direction from the Chinese state and that its equipment might be used for surveillance. US officials have encouraged allied countries—particularly members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance—to enact similar restrictions on equipment from Chinese vendors.
In a statement, Huawei Rotating Chairman Guo Ping said:
“The US Congress has repeatedly failed to produce any evidence to support its restrictions on Huawei products. We are compelled to take this legal action as a proper and last resort.
This ban is unlawful and prevents Huawei from competing fairly, ultimately harming US consumers.”
Telecommunications operators have warned that banning Huawei could slow the rollout of 5G networks, increase deployment costs, and limit access to innovative equipment, though some analysts dispute those claims.
Vinod Nair, a senior partner at Delta Partners, told media outlets earlier this week:
“Even if Huawei were permanently excluded from the US market, competitors such as Nokia, Ericsson, Verizon, and AT&T have the scale to ensure the country’s needs are met. Service quality and speeds are unlikely to suffer.”
Speaking at an event in London, former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said he found it surprising that none of the Five Eyes countries hosts a leading 5G vendor, given their early role in developing wireless technology.
Huawei’s chief information security officer, John Suffolk, has defended the company’s transparency, calling Huawei “the most open and transparent company in the world.” The firm faced criticism, however, after a live feed of a conference was cut before journalists had the chance to ask questions.
Interested in hearing industry leaders discuss these kinds of issues? Attend co-located events such as the IoT Tech Expo, Blockchain Expo, AI & Big Data Expo, and Cyber Security & Cloud Expo World Series, which hold upcoming conferences in locations including Silicon Valley, London, and Amsterdam.