Huawei boss Ren Zhengfei hopes for "opening" of Biden administration

The founder of the Chinese telecom giant Huawei, targeted by American sanctions, called on Tuesday on the Biden administration to "a policy of openness" while trying to reassure himself on the "survival" of the group, during a press interview.

AFP

Huawei has been blacklisted by the former Trump administration to prevent it from acquiring essential American technology for its phones.

"We hope the new administration will have a policy of openness [toward Huawei] that will be beneficial" in the United States, said Ren Zhengfei, who founded the company in 1987.

Huawei today is a global mastodon.

Present in 170 countries and with 194,000 employees, the firm is at the center of Sino-American rivalry against a backdrop of trade and technological warfare and suspicions of espionage.

This mistrust of the company stems in part from Ren Zhengfei's military past and his membership in the Chinese Communist Party, which fuels suspicions of the regime's supposed influence on the group.

Despite U.S. sanctions, the founder of Huawei said Tuesday "still hope to be able to buy large volumes of American materials, components and equipment".

And Mr. Ren believes that "Huawei's ability to survive has increased" despite pressure from Washington.

Source: AFP