Trump administration limiting Huawei access to chips
Commerce Department is 'closing loopholes to prevent a bad actor from access to U.S. technology,' Ross tells 'Mornings with Maria'
The Trump administration is cracking down on Chinese telecom giant Huawei's access to semiconductor chips, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Monday.
"On May 20, we issued an order that prevented American technology from being used in Huawei-designed chips. That led them to do some evasive measures. They were going through third parties," Ross told "Mornings with Maria." "The new rule makes it clear that any use of American software or American fabrication equipment to produce things for Huawei is banned and requires a license."
HUAWEI SURPASSES SAMSUNG AND APPLE IN GLOBAL SMARTPHONE MARKET
The Commerce Department is adding 38 Huawei non-U.S. affiliates across 21 countries to the Entity List, which imposes license requirements on transactions.
In this Oct. 31, 2019, file photo, a man uses his smartphone as he stands near a billboard for Chinese technology firm Huawei at the PT Expo in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
"It's really a question of closing loopholes to prevent a bad actor from access to U.S. technology," Ross said.
President Trump weighed in on the Commerce Department's latest action during an interview with "Fox & Friends" on Monday morning.
"Huawei? I call them Spy-Wei. They're a disaster," Trump said. "We won't share intelligence with any country that uses their equipment."
The Commerce Department now has 153 non-U.S. Huawei affiliates including Huawei itself on the Entity List, a department spokesperson confirmed to FOX Business.
U.S. officials and lawmakers are opposed to the Shenzen-based tech company because of its ties to the Chinese Communist Party and say it's a threat to national security. And the Department of Justice has accused Huawei of scheming to steal the intellectual property of American companies and racketeering conspiracy, plus bank fraud.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
Huawei denies that it sends sensitive information gathered on its devices and networks back to the Chinese government via backdoor access meant exclusively for law enforcement.
FOX Business' inquiry to Huawei was not immediately returned.
FOX Business' Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.