The United States on Monday announced to amends its prohibitions on U.S. companies doing business with China's Huawei to allow them to work together on setting standards for next-generation 5G networks, according to the state's Commerce Department.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said the new rule is to ensure "U.S. industry's ability to more fully contribute to standards-development activities in the telecommunications sector," despite Huawei's "pervasive participation" in standards-development organizations.
"The United States will not cede leadership in global innovation," Ross said. "The department is committed to protecting U.S. national security and foreign policy interests by encouraging U.S. industry to fully engage and advocate for U.S. technologies to become international standards."
In response, Huawei said in a statement late on Tuesday that it would like to "continue holding sincere discussions in relation to standards for new technologies with our counterparts, including those in the U.S., and contribute to the technological advancement of society at large."
The rule noted that U.S. participation in standards-setting "influences the future of 5G, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technologies."
In the telecommunications industry, 5G – fifth-generation wireless networks – are expected to power everything from high-speed video transmissions to self-driving cars.
Last year, the United States placed Huawei on the Commerce Department's entity list, which restricted sales of U.S. goods and technology to the company, citing national security.
Industry and government officials said the rule change should not be viewed as a sign of weakening U.S. resolve against Huawei, the world's largest telecommunications equipment maker. They said the Huawei entity listing put the United States at a disadvantage in standards settings, where companies develop specifications to allow equipment from different companies to function together.
(With input from Reuters)
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