By Alexandra Alper
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – China conservative Republican Marco Rubio calls on the Biden administration to block all sales to Huawei after the sanctioned Chinese tech company released a new AI-enabled laptop powered by an Intel AI processor chip .
The release of Huawei’s first AI-enabled laptop, the MateBook green light to Intel to sell the chip to Huawei.
If the Commerce Department authorized the shipment, “it would be unacceptable and would constitute a failure to enforce export controls against a blacklisted champion of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP),” Rubio and the Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik in a letter to Commerce Department Secretary Gina. Raimondo.
“We urge you to reconsider this damaging position and immediately revoke all export licenses to Huawei,” they added in the letter seen by Reuters.
The letter adds to growing pressure on the Biden administration to take more drastic steps to hamper Huawei. Some of its activities are experiencing something of a resurgence, although the company has long been in Washington’s crosshairs for national security reasons.
Huawei did not respond to a request for comment. Intel said it “strictly complies with all laws and regulations of the countries in which we operate.” A Commerce Department spokesperson said the agency had received the letter and would respond, but had no further comment.
The Chinese Embassy said it opposed “excluding specific companies from specific countries” and abusing the concept of national security to suppress foreign companies without any conclusive evidence.
The United States placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 over concerns it could spy on Americans, part of a broader effort to handicap China’s ability to build up its military. Being added to the list means the company’s suppliers must seek a special, hard-to-obtain license before shipping.
Even so, Huawei suppliers have received billions of dollars in licenses to sell them goods and technology, including a particularly controversial authorization issued by the Trump administration that allowed Intel to supply central processors to Huawei. to use them in its laptops since 2020. .
Critics say these licenses have contributed to the company’s resurgence.
Huawei shocked the industry last August with a new phone powered by a sophisticated chip made by Chinese chipmaker SMIC despite U.S. export restrictions on both companies. The phone helped Huawei smartphone sales increase 64% year-on-year in the first six weeks of 2024, according to research firm Counterpoint.
(Reporting by Alexandra Alper; editing by Edwina Gibbs)
