Panasonic "suspends transactions" with Huawei after the US ban



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A woman walks past a Panasonic building in Tokyo on May 11, 2017.

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The Japanese Panasonic said it was ending the relationship with Huawei in order to comply with the restrictions imposed by the United States, thus bringing a new blow to the Chinese telecommunications firm.

Last week, the United States proposed to Huawei to be on a list of companies with which US companies can not trade without a license.

The ban applies to goods containing at least 25% of materials of US origin, according to reports.

The restrictions mark an escalation in US efforts to block Huawei, posing a security risk.

"Panasonic announced in [an] Internal notice that he should suspend transactions with Huawei and its 68 subsidiaries that have been banned by the US government, "the firm said in a statement.

Last week, the Trump administration added Huawei – the world's second largest smartphone manufacturer – to its "list of entities," which banned the company from acquiring technology from US companies without government approval.

The company's founder, Ren Zhengfei, downplayed the impact of US restrictions on Huawei, but initial signs suggest the spillover could be significant.

Google has prevented Huawei from updating some Android operating system updates, which means that new Huawei smartphone models are about to lose access to certain Google applications.

Japanese companies Softbank and KDDI both said they would not sell Huawei's new handsets yet.

The UK-based chip designer, ARM, told his staff that he had to suspend any deal with Huawei, according to internal documents obtained by the BBC.

Commercial tensions

US movements come as tensions with China have intensified in recent weeks.

Earlier this month, the United States relaunched their trade war with China by raising tariffs, just as the two sides seemed to be moving closer to an agreement.

  • A quick guide to the US-China trade war
  • Shoe giants urge Trump to end tariffs

Huawei has been at the epicenter of the US-Chinese power struggle for months.

Led by the United States, the company is facing a growing response from Western countries to the potential risks associated with the use of its products in next-generation 5G mobile networks.

The United States argues that the Chinese government could use Huawei products for surveillance purposes.

Huawei denies such claims and claims to be independent of the Chinese government.

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