China refutes Pence's criticism of Huawei

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Europe

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"I hope some Americans will have a little bit more confidence in themselves and be a little bit more respectful to other people, people in the so-called 'Old World,'" Yang Jiechi said, adding that people all know where their interests lie.

"So let there be fewer lectures," he stressed.

Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, defended Huawei from U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's harsh words on Saturday during the 55th Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Munich, Germany.

Pence labeled Chinese tech giant Huawei a threat to national security and called on Washington's allies to ban the company from developing 5G wireless infrastructure during the meeting.

As a response, Yang praised Huawei for cooperating very closely with European countries and Chinese law does not require companies to install backdoors or collect intelligence.

"In the Fourth Industrial Revolution, we should all work together," Yang added.

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chief of the Chinese side of the China-U.S. comprehensive economic dialogue, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, jointly chair the opening ceremony of a new round of high-level economic and trade consultations in Beijing, capital of China, February 14, 2019. /Xinhua Photo

Yang also reiterated China's support for multilateralism and peaceful development, saying that the country has always promoted world peace.

He also urged the U.S. to proceed from the fundamental interests of the two peoples and earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the United States. Since late president Richard Nixon, chairman Mao Zedong and premier Zhou Enlai opened the door for China-U.S. exchanges, relations between the two countries have forged ahead with historic achievements through thick and thin, bringing tangible benefits to the two peoples and the world at large, the official noted.

As for China-U.S. economic and trade differences and frictions, Yang said China is willing to solve them through cooperation, but with principles.

Recently, he said, the China-U.S. business teams have conducted intensive consultations and made important progress. It is hoped that both sides will continue to make concerted efforts to push for mutually beneficial and win-win agreements.

On the trade imbalance between China and the U.S., Yang said the causes are complex. A large part of this is due to the U.S. export control toward China. Report from a U.S. research institute showed that the U.S. trade deficit with China could be reduced by 30 percent if it relaxed its export controls to the level of France.

Opinion: U.S. has given up on trying to compete fairly

Despite the U.S. attempts to undermine Huawei, many telecom providers in Europe are still working and testing with Chinese manufacturers, Huawei in particular. Huawei has deals in at least eight European countries and has tested with local providers in at least 12 EU member states.

One of CGTN's current affairs commentators Einar Tangen summed up what he thinks Washington is trying to accomplish. "The fact is, the U.S. has given up on trying to compete fairly and now it's trying to trap up the competition."

Last year, America's biggest telecom company AT&T began to advertise its so-called "5G Evolution" services. It later hit with a lawsuit by competitor Sprint. AT&T was accused of false advertising and misleading consumers to believe that its advanced 4G network was actually 5G.

Tangen says America's call to alienate Huawei could end up alienating itself. "The difficulty in dealing with Trump here is sincerity. You don't know where he draws the lines. He's withdrawn many treaties. He's put Europe in a particularly difficult situation."

For European operators, business is business. After all, the exclusion of Chinese firms would lead to fewer vendors and, consequently, higher costs.

(With inputs from Xinhua)

(CGTN's Shang Jianglong and Shao Cong also contributed to the story.)