Huawei Makes Big Move Against US Government

Chinese tech giant Huawei is fighting back against the American government's ban on federal agencies using its products and services. In a lawsuit filed in federal court in Texas, the company calls for the ban the Trump administration put in place in August to be overturned, the Guardian reports. "This ban not only is unlawful, but also restricts Huawei from engaging in fair competition, ultimately harming US consumers," chairman Guo Ping said Thursday. He accused the US of misleading the public about the ban, which also bars the government from working with Huawei-using contractors, and said Congress had failed to produce any evidence that Huawei's products are a security risk. Guo accused Congress of acting as "judge, jury, and executioner" by introducing the ban, CNN reports.

The lawsuit argues that the National Defense Authorization Act's Section 889, which puts in place the Huawei ban, is unconstitutional because it punishes the company without a trial. Writing for Forbes, Zak Doffman argues the move might not be exactly what it seems—that is, focused on the US. Huawei argues that the ban will cut down on US 5G competition and therefore increase the costs America will ultimately pay, "but this is misleading." Even if Huawei's suit ends in its favor, "it's hard to conceive the Chinese equipment manufacturer playing a significant role in US infrastructure," he writes. What is really at stake: global perception. "This is about what happens everywhere else, a battle for hearts and minds around the world as large-scale deployments of 5G get underway." (More Huawei stories.)