The US has charged Chinese telecom giant Huawei with a series of crimes including stealing trade secrets, a move that can escalate hostilities between the world’s biggest economic powers and complicate efforts to negotiate an end to their bruising trade war.
The charges were unveiled ahead of crucial trade talks between American and Chinese officials on January 30 and 31. The charges are likely to raise tensions between China and the US.
However, the White House Monday denied that there was any link between the two.
The Justice Department on Monday unsealed two cases against Huawei that detail a slew of allegations. One indictment accuses Huawei of trying to steal trade secrets from T-Mobile (TMUS), and of promising bonuses to employees who collected confidential information on competitors.
A second indictment claims the company worked to skirt US sanctions on Iran.
China decried the “political manipulations” behind the US case against Huawei.
“For some time, the US has used state power to discredit and crack down on specific Chinese companies in an attempt to strangle the enterprises’ legitimate and legal operations,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.