U.S Investigation Of Huawei Technologies Over Iran Sanctions Violation May Affect U.S.-China Trade Talk

Huawei Technologies Co.Ltd., the largest Chinese maker of telecommunications equipment is facing a probe from the Federal Bureau of Investigation under the U.S. Justice Department for possible violation of Iran sanctions. Simultaneously, senior U.S. officials are to visit China in the coming days to discuss levying import tariffs on the Chinese goods. The country with the largest population in the world is expected to retaliate if things do not go as per its expectations.

According to reports, the agents of FBI along with Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Department of Commerce (DOC) are scanning the transactions made by the Chinese conglomerate. Incidentally, OFAC is an authority that enforces sanctions whereas DOC is looking into the probe dealing with the transactions of another Chinese company, Shenzhen, a mobile, and telecommunication giant.

Chinese Giant Companies Stuck In Sanctions Violation Probe

The sources have said that the prosecutors are currently probing the shipping of products of U.S. origin to Iran and other countries by the Chinese company violating the export and sanctions laws of America. The investigation first came to the fore when the Wall Street Journal published a news piece on it revealing that the whole investigation process is being run under the authority of U.S. Attorney’s office in Brooklyn.

However, the probe has not received any confirmation from concerned officials involved in the investigation process. Even the Department of Justice in Washington, as well as John Marzulli from the office of prosecutor, have neither denied nor accepted the investigation news. This is not the first time that a Chinese company had to face an investigation under the violation of sanctions law. Another Chinese technology company ZTE Corp had to pay penalties for violating the U.S sanctions law while carrying out transactions with North Korea and Iran. As a result, the authorities have tightened the criminal investigation against Huawei.

But Huawai Corp which has a big market for handsets and telecommunications network equipment said that it complies with, “all applicable laws and regulations where it operates, including the applicable export control and sanction laws and regulations of the UN, US and EU.”

 Huwai Investigation May Affect U.S.- China Tariff Talks

U.S Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will be soon meeting the Chinese officials in Beijing to discuss a deal that can possibly stop the U.S. from imposing the tax of around $150 billion on Chinese imports. If the U.S goes ahead with its decision to impose the tariff, China has decided to retaliate by imposing duties on all the U.S. products including soybeans to airplanes.