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"Don't be victimised like silent lambs": China supports Huawei's lawsuit against US

Huawei has won the Chinese government’s approval for its lawsuit against the United States government last week.

The Chinese tech giant is suing the US government in a Texas federal court in a bid to overturn part of a provision in the National Defense Authorization Act, which was signed by president Donald Trump in August 2018.

The Act specifically forbids government agencies from using technology from Huawei and its Chinese rival, ZTE. Huawei alleges that a portion of the law violates the US constitution by singling out an individual or group for punishment without trial.

Calling upon Chinese companies not to act like “silent lambs”, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi said the Chinese government supported Huawei’s moves at his annual press conference during the National People’s Congress on Friday.

“We support the company and the individual in question in seeking legal redress to protect their interests and refusing to be victimised like silent lambs”, Wang said while raising his fists, according to The South China Morning Post.

US prosecutors have previously filed criminal charges against Huawei in Washington state and New York as the ongoing spat between US and Huawei has intensified in the battle for dominance of the 5G market.

Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of former general and Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, was detained in Canada at the behest of the US for allegedly defrauding multiple financial institutions in breach of US-imposed bans on dealing with Iran. China, in turn, arrested Canadian diplomats and citizens.

In reference to Meng’s arrest, Wang reiterated the government’s stance that the US was making a “political move to bring Huawei and Meng down” and said 5G competition was “normal”. He also called on the US to pursue shared goals with China.

“In our view, cooperation has always outweighed friction,” he said. “In recent period, we have seen more challenges and rifts in our relationship, but a historical perspective would reveal that what we are witnessing is contrary to the long arc of our relations.

“We still have a positive outlook on Sino-US relations, and I think this view is shared by broad sections of American society. Our two countries should not, and will not, descend into confrontation.”

He continued: “Cooperation is still the mainstream of Sino-US ties. Our ongoing economic and trade consultations have made substantial progress to the applause of both sides and the wider world.”

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