Trump extends the Huawei, ZTE ban to 2021

Last year the Trump administration issued a ban on Huawei and ZTE and blamed the companies for spying on US citizens. The ban later went through various iterations but it prevented USA based companies from doing business with Huawei and ZTE.

Now Reuters is reporting that the ban has been extended. US President Donald Trump signed a bill on Wednesday to extend the ban for another year. The US Department of Commerce is expected to extend the license again allowing U.S. companies to keep doing business with Huawei. The Wireless Trade organization CTIA has urged the Commerce Department to give a long-term extension citing the coronavirus pandemic. The organization noted that “now is not the time to hamper global operators’ ability to maintain the health of the networks.”

Both the companies as well as the Commerce Department refused to comment on the matter. However, it’s clear that Huawei won’t be able to tap into the USA till 2021 and the company won’t be launching any phones with Google Play Services till 2021.