Courtrooms To Canola Fields: Huawei-us Tensions Span Globe

Chinese tech giant Huawei’s tensions with Washington, which says the telecom equipment maker is a security risk, stretch across four continents from courtrooms to corporate boardrooms to Canadian canola fields.

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In the latest twist, Huawei Technologies Ltd. is asking a court in Texas to strike down a legal ban on the government using its equipment or dealing with any contractor that does.

Washington is trying to persuade European and other allies to shun the biggest maker of network technology as their phone carriers invest billions of dollars in upgrading to next-generation communications.

The company denies accusations it might facilitate Chinese spying or is controlled by the ruling Communist Party. Chinese authorities say the United States is exaggerating security concerns to block a potential competitor.

Meanwhile, U.S. prosecutors are trying to extradite Huawei’s chief financial officer from Canada to face charges she lied to banks about dealings with Iran.

SECURITY CONCERNS: U.S. authorities say Huawei might facilitate Chinese spying by installing “backdoors” in its equipment for eavesdropping or sharing secrets about customers. The company’s U.S. sales plunged after a congressional panel in 2012 labeled Huawei and Chinese rival ZTE Corp. security risks and told phone carriers to avoid them. Huawei denies it is a risk and complains Washington has released no evidence or details of its accusations. Australia, Japan, Taiwan and some other governments have imposed curbs on use of Huawei technology over security concerns. The company operates testing centers in Britain, Canada, Germany and Belgium for governments to examine its technology.