WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping are working to give Chinese telecom company ZTE Corp “a way to get back into business, fast.”
“President Xi of China, and I, are working together to give massive Chinese phone company, ZTE, a way to get back into business, fast. Too many jobs in China lost. Commerce Department has been instructed to get it done!” Trump wrote on Twitter.
The Chinese technology company earlier this month suspended its main operations after the US Commerce Department banned American supplies to its business.
The ban is the result of ZTE’s failure to comply with an agreement with the US government after it pleaded guilty last year to conspiring to violate US sanctions by illegally shipping US goods and technology to Iran, the Commerce Department said.
As one of the world’s largest telecom equipment makers, ZTE relied on US companies such as Qualcomm Inc and Intel Corp for components.
American companies are estimated to provide 25 per cent to 30 per cent of the components used in ZTE’s equipment, which includes smartphones and gear to build telecommunications networks.
