Sen. Mitt Romney introduced an amendment to a spending bill this week that seeks to block President Trump from ending sanctions on Chinese technology giant Huawei as a bargaining chip to win a trade deal with China.
Huawei was blacklisted by the Commerce Department last month after Trump said Huawei posed a national security threat. The severe restrictions mean American companies need special permission to sell components to the company. Trump also signed an executive order blocking the company from U.S. telecom networks.
Bloomberg reports Romney wants to attach his amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.
Romney’s amendment says the ban can only be lifted if Huawei and its senior officers haven’t violated U.S. or United Nations sanctions, or the company hasn’t engaged in the theft of U.S. intellectual property in the preceding five years. Another condition is that the Commerce Department should rule Huawei isn’t a threat to American telecommunications systems or critical infrastructure of the U.S. and its allies.
“Senator Romney supports the administration’s decision to prohibit U.S.-based companies from doing business with Huawei, and his amendment to the NDAA will ensure that remains the case until they no longer pose a national security threat,” spokeswoman Arielle Mueller said in an email.
Last week Senators Marco Rubio and Mark Warner to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warning against Trump easing restrictions on the company to get China to agree to a trade bargain.
