Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei has asked the U.S. to formally investigate its background, in hopes of clearing a path for the company to do business in the country after authorities blocked a takeover deal due to security concerns.
"Unfortunately, over the past 10 years, as we have been investing in the U.S., we have encountered a number of misperceptions that some hold about us," said Ken Hu, Huawei's deputy chairman. "These include unfounded and unproven claims of 'close connections with the Chinese military,' 'disputes over intellectual property rights,' 'allegations of financial support from the Chinese government,' and 'threats to the national security of the U.S.' These falsehoods have had a significant and negative impact on our business activity and, as such, they must be addressed as part of our effort to correct the record."
In addition, Huawei said it paid $222 million in licensing fees to Western firms last year, of which $175 million went to the U.S.
"We sincerely hope that the U.S. government will carry out a formal investigation on any concerns it may have about us," Hu said, adding that its founder Ren Zhengfei, who served as an engineer in the People's Liberation Army until 1983, was one of many chief executives of large companies who had served in the military.
Huawei has been sued twice in the U.S. by rivals Cisco, which later withdrew the case, and by Motorola, which alleges that the Chinese company set up a spy ring to gather its proprietary information. Huawei is challenging these claims in court.
In addition, Huawei took on claims that it is a threat to the national security of the U.S., saying it has only produced civilian standard equipment. It added that it had bought in third-parties to hunt for any security flaws in its systems.
Last year, a group of Republican senators wrote to the heads of four federal agencies after hearing of a possible Sprint deal with Huawei, alleging the company may have supplied communications equipment to Iran and to Iraq, possibly in violation of U.N. sanctions. The lawmakers and some national security experts also feared contracts with Huawei could help the Chinese government to manipulate U.S. wireless networks and disrupt or intercept phone and Internet messages.
Huawei is the world's second largest maker of network equipment and reported sales of $28 billion last year, working with many of the world's leading telecoms for its innovative, competitively priced products.
Despite its success, the company struggled to gain a foothold in the United States against rivals such as Cisco, running up against a wall of innuendo and anti-Chinese prejudice, as well as worries of the lack of transparency at the company.
But in its open letter, Huawei is inviting the government to rip the curtain back -- but whether the U.S. will do so remains uncertain.
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