Reflecting On The Huawei Case, Joe Biden Is Getting More And More Stringent In Overseeing The Technology Export Policy To China

JAKARTA - US President Joe Biden proposed a post overseeing export policy to China on Tuesday, September 21. He still sees Chinese telecommunications company Huawei as a national security threat and hopes to keep the company on a trade blacklist unless "something changes".

If confirmed to the Undersecretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, former Pentagon official, Alan Estevez, also promised to "look at" Honor Device Co - a handset unit separated from Huawei - to see if telcos use this spin-off brand, to minimize or avoid designation on his blacklist.

"I have seen maneuvers before by the Chinese", said Estevez, who testified at a Senate banking committee hearing. "That's something I have to look at when I get to the department if I have to be confirmed. I don't have any information in front of me that would give me the full picture of it".

Huawei was placed on a trade blacklist by President Donald Trump's administration in 2019 over national security concerns and, forcing suppliers to apply for special licenses to sell it.

The company said last November its consumer business was under tremendous pressure due to the "unavailability of the necessary technical elements" for its mobile phone business and decided to sell its Honor assets.

The Washington Post reports that the US government is considering whether to add Honor to the blacklist after lawmakers raised questions about the company in a letter to Commerce Department Secretary, Gina Raimondo last month.

Huawei declined to comment to Reuters on an earlier statement that it would not own shares or engage in any business management activities in the new company. Honor also did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

Thea Kendler, who was nominated as assistant secretary at Commerce for export administration, told the committee she was "extremely proud" of her work as a US prosecutor who accused Huawei of operating as a criminal enterprise, stealing trade secrets, and defrauding financial institutions.