Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying on Thursday stressed Beijing would not sit idly as the U.S. keeps bullying Huawei.
"We are firmly opposed to the United States using the state power to unjustifiably suppress certain Chinese enterprises," Hua said during a daily press conference.
According to Reuters, senior officials in the Trump administration have agreed to new measures to squeeze the global supply of chips to Huawei Technologies, namely foreign companies using U.S. chipmaking equipment would need a U.S. license before supplying certain chips to Huawei.
The rule change reportedly aims to restrict sales of chips to Huawei by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, a major producer of chips for Huawei's HiSilicon unit, as well as the world's largest contract maker.
The government's response came just two days after Huawei's chairman Eric Xu said during a news conference on Tuesday that more restrictions from the Trump administration may prompt Beijing to take retaliatory measures against U.S. companies.
"I think the Chinese government will not just stand by and watch Huawei be slaughtered," Xu said. But whether Trump will sign off on the rule change is up in the air.
When answering how Huawei would responds to possible stricter U.S. chip export controls, Xu said "I hope it's fake news, or we might see an endless flow of disastrous aftermath. It is difficult for any player in the global industry chain to stand alone."
"Once Pandora's Box is open, it may be devastating not only to Huawei, but to the globalized industrial ecology," he added, expecting that "the global industry chain can work together to provide trusted products to global customers."
Xu predicted 2020 would be the most difficult year yet for the company because of the U.S. measures.