The CIA accuses Huawei of receiving funding from Chinese state security.
Huawei is facing fresh allegations from U.S. intelligence for allegedly receiving funding from Chinese state security. According to The Times, a source informed it that the CIA has accused Huawei of receiving funding from China’s National Security Commission, the People’s Liberation Army, and a third branch of the Chinese state intelligence network.
This comes after U.S. intelligence shared its claims with members of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing group earlier this year, which consists of Britain, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
The British newspaper also includes a response from a Huawei representative that denies the allegations, stating:
Huawei does not comment on unsubstantiated allegations backed up by zero evidence from anonymous sources.
Huawei, the CIA, and China’s Foreign Ministry have not yet responded to requests made for a comment on the matter.
The U.S. has long feared that Huawei’s equipment could be used for spying, and these new allegations come at a time where trade tensions are very high between the United States and China.
Not too long ago in December, Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada at the request of the U.S. for charges of bank and wire fraud in violation of U.S. sanctions against Iran. Not only is Meng the CFO of Huawei, but she is also the daughter of its founder, Ren Zhengfei. Meng has denied any wrongdoing and her father insists the arrest was “politically motivated”.
Reuters has also reported, the United States is expected to push its allies to adopt shared security and policy measures at a meeting in Prague next month, which will make it more difficult for Huawei to dominate future 5G telecommunications networks.
The U.S. government’s beef with Huawei isn’t really about phones.
