White House office requests another 2-year delay on Huawei ban, WSJ reports

We know that the US had offered temporary relief to Huawei by lifting the ban for 90 days and now after realizing the issues it might face with federal contractors, the White House office wants another two years before the Chinese tech behemoth is completely banned in the US.

Russel T. Vought, the acting director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, believes that the federal contractors are not ready to ditch the Chinese company and he has requested Congress for another two-year relief for Huawei, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

It is pertinent to note here that the ban on Huawei is the part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The ban will prohibit contractors for the federal government from using Huawei equipment over concerns that Huawei’s tech could be used for spying over Americans on behalf of the Chinese government.

The WSJ reports that in actual, Vought has requested for the span of four years, (rather than two), from the passage of the NDAA before the Chinese companies including Huawei, ZTE and others are completely barred from dealing with US government. A spokesperson of the White House’s office told WSJ;

“This is about ensuring that companies who do business with the US government or receive federal grants and loans have time to extricate themselves from doing business with Huawei and other Chinese tech companies listed in the NDAA.”

The US-China trade war has taken an interesting turn as some US govt officials are supporting a delay in the ban, while others are of the view that further delay would only threaten US national security. Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader has raised concerns;

“There is simply no reason, in my mind, for such a lengthy delay. It would only extend a window of opportunity for what is already a dire threat to our national security.”