Huawei lashes out a US government accusing it of 'bullying,' says its 'working with Google'

As you would expect from tech giant when backed into a corner, Huawei has lashed out at the Trump administration’s decision to place it on a black list that US companies are forbidden from engaging in business dealings. It is an action very similar to that taken against fellow Chinese company ZTE last year by the Trump administration after it was accused of back channeling its smartphones made with US components into Iran. Although in this instance, although Huawei is accused of similar behavior, the principal reason for the action is a US government accusation that it has been spying for the Chinese government.

“Huawei is becoming the victim of the bullying by the U.S. administration. This is not just an attack against Huawei. It is an attack on the liberal, rules-based order,” Huawei’s EU representative Abraham Liu told Reuters. One of the key decisions affecting its booming smartphone business is the decision by Google to revoke its Android license, blocking future Huawei smartphones from having any Google services including the Play Store and apps installed. Smartphones already sold are said to be unaffected at this stage.

Despite this, Liu added “We are working closely with Google to find out how Huawei can handle the situation and the impact from the US Department of Commerce decision.” However, it is unclear what if anything Google can do to help Huawei under the current sanctions. To date, Google has pointed to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) as Huawei’s only avenue to continue to sell devices with Android installed. While Chinese customers already have access to an Huawei app store, it will be missing important apps critical for international sales.