Some days ago we shared here on the blog about the news that the administration Trump issued a new order that extends again the 90-day "grace period" (now until February 2020) during which it allows US companies to do business with Huawei, since as many will know, so far this year Huawei has been affected due to being blacklisted.
And also it has been reported that the United States Department of Commerce United too you are examining the possibility of granting individual licenses to local companies wishing to continue doing business with "at risk" entities like Huawei that are blacklisted by the US government for "national security" reasons.
Companies like Google, Intel and Microsoft are particularly interested in the second option that would provide them and their partners (Huawei in this case) a certain stability and better guarantees for the continuation of your business transactions.
On Wednesday, the US Department of Commerce confirmed that it has begun licensing to some US companies that want to continue doing business with Huawei.
The United States Department of Commerce said that approximately 50% of the 300 permit applications were processed and that half of them, a quarter of the total, were approved.
"The Department issues these restricted licenses to allow limited and specific activities that do not pose a significant risk to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States."
Microsoft, one of the beneficiaries of this easing measure, welcomed the measure as a spokesperson commented:
“On November 20, the United States Department of Commerce accepted Microsoft's application for an export license for consumer software in favor of Huawei. We appreciate the department's action in response to our request.
This new gesture of goodwill occurs when Trump administration struggles to finalize the signing of the first stage of a trade agreement with China to end the commercial confrontation between the two regimes for many months.
Since Huawei could do without equipment from the United States to design its devices, but doing so without the software would be more difficult. The Chinese tech giant was eagerly awaiting licenses that would allow it to continue exploiting "almost unavoidable right now" software solutions and services such as Windows or Azure on Microsoft or Android and their associated services from Google for their growth in the market. international.
However, on the American side, This measure of relaxation does not appeal to everyone. A group of Republican and Democratic senators recently urged the Trump administration to stop issuing these licenses, warning that even limited deals with Huawei could pose a risk to national security.
In a letter to President Trump, a group of 15 senators criticized this measure.
“Given the security risks posed by Huawei's operations in the United States, we urge you to take immediate action to suspend the approval of these licenses and to ensure that Congress is properly informed about the approval process. Licenses and their implications for future national security, "wrote Senators Charles Schumer and Tom Cotton
In the letter and you they asked Trump to ensure that the administration informs legislators and key legislative committees of any licenses that would benefit Huawei in the United States.
In addition, a senator made a statement arguing that Huawei "represents a clear and growing threat to the economic and national security of the United States and its allies," stating:
“I strongly believe that it is contrary to the interests of US national security to license US exports.
From the letter sent by the senators to the President of the United States, it can be consulted at the following link.