Will the 'Huawei Boycott' Continue in the Biden Era?

2021 National Defense Authorization Act
Includes Chinese Telecom Equipment like Huawei
Continued Anti-Huawei Stance

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] With the advent of the Biden administration, attention is also focused on the direction of the anti-Huawei sanctions that the Trump administration had concentrated on.

While there were speculations that the Biden administration, which pursues multilateralism, might lower the pressure on Huawei, there is growing support for the view that it will follow a similar path to former President Trump, as Congress is pushing a bill to reconsider the deployment of U.S. troops to countries using Huawei technology.

According to foreign media on the 6th, the U.S. Congress included a new provision in the 2021 Fiscal Year National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to "reconsider" the deployment of U.S. troops and major military equipment to countries using 5G technologies such as Huawei.

According to the bill, when the U.S. Department of Defense deploys troops and equipment overseas, it must consider the risk factors that the 5G network of the host country could pose to personnel, equipment, and operations. The bill specifically pointed out the risks of Huawei and ZTE. This adds weight to the side that intends to continue strong containment of Huawei.

This decision by Congress aligns with the "Huawei boycott" policy that the Trump administration has maintained.

Previously, in May last year, the Trump administration placed Huawei on the export ban blacklist citing national security reasons and required permission for supplying products such as semiconductors and displays using U.S. technology to Huawei.

As a result, Huawei's business ties with American companies like Google were severed, and in September, additional sanctions were announced to block Huawei's supply not only in the U.S. but also in third countries using American technology and equipment, intensifying the pressure on Huawei.

Experts believe that the anti-Huawei stance in U.S. politics is already bipartisan, so the pressure on Huawei is expected to continue. James Andrew Lewis, Deputy Director of the U.S. think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies, forecasted, "(Regarding the Huawei pressure policy) the Biden administration’s policies will not show sudden moves but will follow the same path as the Trump administration more systematically."

Meanwhile, in November, Huawei sold its mid-to-low-end smartphone brand Honor as part of a strategy to focus and prioritize. Huawei stated, "The consumer business is going through a difficult period of enormous pressure," and "We have decided to sell the entire Honor business unit to ensure the continuation of the business."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.