US Education Secretary Betsy DeVos ‘must investigate Huawei’s influence on American universities’
‘Huawei is a snake in the grass. Their influence on these college campuses is alarming,’ says a lawmaker from Indiana
The White House and US Congress are at odds over whether to save Chinese telecoms giant ZTE, which has been accused of threatening national security. But that is not the only Chinese company in lawmakers’ sights.
Huawei, another Chinese “national champion” technology firm, is drawing scrutiny for its partnerships with American colleges and universities in areas of technology that the Chinese government is trying to dominate.
A bipartisan group of 26 lawmakers wrote US Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Tuesday to highlight the national security implications of Huawei’s research partnerships and other relationships with several dozen American colleges and universities.
They want DeVos to investigate the Huawei Innovation Research Programme and other initiatives through which Huawei partners with institutes of higher education across the country.
“We believe these partnerships may pose a significant threat to national security and this threat demands your attention and oversight,” states the letter, which was organised by Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Indiana Representative Jim Banks, both Republicans.