90-day extension exposes recklessness of U.S.' Huawei ban

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Editor's Note: Tom Fowdy, who graduated from Oxford University's China Studies Program and majored in politics from Durham University, writes about international relations focusing on China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The article reflects the author's opinions, and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

On Monday evening the United States Department of Commerce granted Huawei and other entities a 90-day reprieve from restrictions imposed earlier that day, which blacklisted the firm and its affiliates from purchasing American technology and other components.

As a consequence, on the same day, Google announced that it had revoked the firm's licensing for Android operating systems while other U.S. suppliers also declared their intent to cease business with the company.

Now, however, rather than taking effect immediately the three-month window authorizes "specific, limited engagement in Huawei's transactions involving the export, re-export and transfer of items." U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross commented that the extension "will allow operations to continue for existing Huawei mobile phone users and rural broadband networks."

What does the sudden imposition of such an extension reveal? It reveals that the decision to impose a sweeping ban on Huawei across American industries was poorly thought out, abrasive and destructive, and typical of the Trump administration's style of abusing executive powers without understanding their grave implications.

As business with Huawei runs deep across American hardware and software technologies, the idea that it could be bluntly cut out without consequences was truly reckless. Now, Huawei needs to utilize this window to push forward the readjustments in its supply chains and develop alternatives to American markets.

A Huawei store in Beijing, May 20, 2019. /VCG Photo

In the midst of it all, Washington clearly recognizes its mistake, yet owing to the calamity of the White House there is no space to rectify it.

The Trump administration is easily the most incompetent and profoundly disastrous American presidency of modern times. In the White House sits an individual with no real comprehension of diplomacy and the world, carved out his fortune through abrasive, superfluous and dishonest business tactics.

Yet he has all the powers of the American executive on his fingertips and it is in his constitutional right to use them as he pleases. Thus with the stroke of a pen, he decided to take a sledgehammer to a 100-billion-U.S.-dollar company by banning it from U.S markets without a thought to the consequences.

It is typical of Trump to pursue such self-centered, impulsive and reactionary decisions. Thus with just one signature, hundreds of U.S. firms could no longer do business with Huawei and makers of microchips and processor computers could no longer sell to Huawei, one of their biggest customers.

Telecommunications firms, reliant on affordable Huawei gear, no longer have a supplier, so does other numerous U.S. tech companies that relied on Huawei.

U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington, May 20, 2019. /VCG Photo

Trump assumed that he was tactfully undermining China, yet he has just delivered entire sectors of his economy a significant bruising without warning. That is neither good nor staple governance but profoundly reckless.

As a result, the 90-day window issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce is an indirect acknowledgment of the sheer calamity that Trump's decisions have imposed upon American businesses and failure to even think about the collateral damage such moves would cause.

The White House and executive departments of the government were likely inundated with complaints from CEO's in the aftermath of the ban.

To impose such a massive decision randomly as a reaction to geopolitical events was not sensible, empathetic or realistic, ironic of course for a president who claims he is supporting American jobs and businesses like never before.

Whilst, of course, a 90-day window offers respite for American businesses to stabilize things and create contingency plans, as well as Huawei itself, there can nevertheless be no turning back. The chances of a breakthrough in China-U.S. talks which can reverse this decision are slim.

Huawei logo. /VCG Photo

Huawei must look toward the long-term future. It has no choice but to move beyond the American market. It must place all emphasis upon facilitating its own domestic supply chains and technological capabilities. This will be challenging but not impossible.

But again, the narrative should not be solely centered upon whether Huawei will suffer or not. Locked down by geopolitically motivated protectionism from the White House, the American technology sector will undoubtedly feel the pain.

Chip providers such as Intel and Qualcomm are simply never going to be able to find alternative clients with the scope and market share that Huawei has, both locally in China and to the rest of the world.

If Huawei can emerge stronger from this crisis, it will only result in more loss of business for American suppliers, which are locked down and hammered by the protectionism of the White House.

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