The US Department of Commerce has announced yesterday a series of measures to cut the ability of the Chinese group to develop semiconductors abroad using American technology, while Huawei uses this type of electronic chips for its smartphones and its network equipment. “This announcement blocks Huawei’s efforts to circumvent export controls,” the ministry said in a statement.
This announcement should further strain relations already damaged by the Covid-19 pandemic, which started in China. And Donald Trump never fails to criticize Beijing on it. The American president even threatened Thursday to sever all relations with the Asian giant. The ministry announced to have “strategically and very precisely targeted the purchases of semiconductors by Huawei“.
The American authorities are doing everything to limit the presence in the United States of the Chinese telecommunications giant. They accuse it for working with the Chinese authorities and therefore of presenting a high risk of espionage. Charges denied repeatedly and at the highest level of the Chinese company.
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The United States has blacklisted Huawei, making collaboration with American businesses almost impossible. As a result, the Chinese company can no longer install Google services and apps on its smartphones.
Huawei will continue to receive shipments from TSMC for the next 120 days
By announcing the new restrictions, US officials said they realized that Huawei had successfully circumvented restrictions imposed since 2019. Huawei and 114 subsidiaries were then blacklisted, which required companies to obtain a license to be able to export American products.
“We need to change our rules exploited by Huawei and HiSilicon (a subsidiary of the telecommunications giant manufacturing semiconductors) to prevent American technologies from serving malicious activities contrary to the interests of the national security of the United States and their foreign policy, “.
The US government, however, allows 120 days, starting this Friday, before the application of these new restrictions. Foreign companies using US technology to manufacture semiconductors for Huawei or its subsidiaries will still be able to deliver semiconductors already produced for a period of 120 days. The move could pose serious problems for TSMC, the large Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturing groups supplying Huawei.