Unlike ZTE, Huawei managed to avoid a lot of attention throughout the year. However, that all came crashing down when the President of the United States signed the Defense Authorization Act which, among many other things, banned government usage of Huawei and ZTE products.
That decision prevents U.S. government workers and contractors from using Huawei products in “essential” roles, which means Huawei technology can’t be used in anything related to accessing, viewing, or routing data. And while that’s a pretty big blow to Huawei, things may be getting worse if a new report from The Wall Street Journal evolves into action from certain countries.
According to the report, the U.S. government is currently requesting from its allies that they stop using Huawei products as well. Currently, the U.S. government has spoken with Italy, Japan, and Germany, and may be even offering financial incentives like subsidies if those governments also choose to stop using Huawei products. The fear has extended from simply using Huawei products in the United States, but also internationally, especially on U.S. bases across the globe.
Huawei has a lot of infrastructure out there, including a planned 5G rollout, and that has led the U.S. government to raise its concerns to include international areas. In response to the report, Huawei said, “If a government’s behavior extends beyond its jurisdiction, such activity should not be encouraged”.
Whether or not these other governments follow the U.S. government’s path remains to be seen. As it stands in the U.S., Huawei’s latest flagship series, the Mate 20 series, isn’t available in the U.S. at all. However! You can buy Huawei’s wearables, like the Band 3, domestically.
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