US-based engineering body IEEE reinstates Huawei employees to peer review process after clarification

A leading US-based engineering association has reinstated Huawei employees in the peer review process of its professional journals after a strong backlash from Chinese scientists.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) lifted restrictions on editorial and peer review activities of Huawei employees after receiving clarification from the US government that export controls do not apply to the organisation’s publication activities, according to a June 2 statement.

“Employees of Huawei and its affiliates may participate as peer reviewers and editors in our publication process. All IEEE members, regardless of employer, can continue to participate in all of the activities of the IEEE,” said the statement published on IEEE’s website.

The announcement came after IEEE’s decision to ban Huawei triggered protests from some of China’s leading scientists and professional organisations last week. They condemned the move as an attack on academic independence and exchange.

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IEEE, a major science publisher, had banned staff from China’s telecoms giant Huawei from reviewing submissions to its journals because the Chinese company was put on US government’s export control blacklist.

Ten major Chinese professional societies, including the Chinese Institute of Electronics and China Institute of Communications, were among the latest in China to criticise IEEE. In a joint letter issued on Sunday, the 10 societies urged IEEE to right its wrong and regain the trust from its members and the global science community with actions.

“We urge IEEE to realise the harm it has done to global science community and use its action to clean its bad impact and bring academic exchange back to its right track,” said the joint statement, which was issued a day before IEEE announced it was lifting the restrictions on Huawei employees.

The IEEE storm was the latest instance of tensions between the world’s two biggest economies as the trade dispute spills over into technology, scientific research and academia, and media. At least two Chinese professors had publicly announced their resignation from IEEE, while China Computer Federation suspended its ties with IEEE last week.

Hours after IEEE’s latest statement to reinstate Huawei employees in its peer reviewing process, Zhang Haixia, a Peking University professor, who was the first to quit IEEE in protest in China, praised IEEE in an open letter on Monday and said she would rejoin the research body.

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Despite being seen as an international organisation with members from more than 160 countries, IEEE released a statement last week saying the New York-registered organisation must meet its legal obligations under the laws of the US and other jurisdictions and that compliance with regulations “protects the IEEE, our volunteers, and our members”.

In the statement issued on June 2, IEEE defended its previous move of restricting Huawei employees in certain activities.

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“Our initial, more restrictive approach was motivated solely by our desire to protect our volunteers and our members from legal risk,” it said.

“With the clarification received, this risk has been addressed. We appreciate the many questions and comments from our members and volunteers around the world and thank them for their patience as we worked through a legally complex situation.”

Huawei had also been temporarily stripped of membership from the Wi-fi Alliance, the Bluetooth SIG, and the SD Association after the Trump administration barred US companies from working with the Chinese firm. Those three key tech associations restored Huawei's membership last week.