Huawei urges greater collaboration and openness on AI between China and EU

Shenzhen-based technology firm has faced sanctions in EU countries and the US because of perceived national security risks

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Shoppers look at Huawei smartphones at a store in Beijing, China on November 26. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 6:00pm, 5 Dec 2024Updated: 8:10pm, 6 Dec 2024

A Europe-based Huawei executive has taken aim at policies to block the Chinese tech company’s entry into some markets, warning that this could limit the development of the European artificial intelligence industry.

Tony Jin Yong, Huawei’s vice-president for Europe, said he was puzzled by measures to form “exclusive groups” among “like-minded countries”, without specifying those countries and groups.

“We are very confused, as this approach limits cooperation by focusing on the country of origin [of tech companies],” Jin said on Wednesday at an event on global AI governance and China-Europe cooperation at the state-backed Centre for China and Globalisation in Beijing.

The Shenzhen-based technology firm has been viewed with suspicion and faced sanctions in European countries in recent years because of perceived national security risks. Several EU member countries have banned Huawei components from their 5G networks.

The firm has also been sanctioned by the United States, whose intelligence officials see it as an extension of China’s military – a claim both Huawei and Beijing have denied. The US has added Huawei to its Entity List, requiring the company to get government approval to buy American technology and barring US firms from buying Huawei equipment with government funds.

“We disagree with using the political stance to block certain companies from the market,” Jin said.