Facebook to cut off Huawei to comply with US sanctions

Facebook said Friday it would stop allowing pre-installation of its social networking apps on Huawei devices to comply with US sanctions against the Chinese technology giant.

The social media giant said it took the step after US President Donald Trump's order barring Huawei from US technology exports over concerns that it works with Chinese intelligence. "We are reviewing the Commerce Department's final rule and the more recently issued temporary general license and taking steps to ensure compliance," a Facebook spokesperson told AFP.

The California company said people with existing Huawei smartphones with Facebook apps will continue to be able to use and download app updates provided by Facebook. The move by Facebook is the latest to isolate Huawei, which had become the world's second largest smartphone vendor despite security concerns voiced in Washington.

Google last month said it would cut ties to Huawei, making it harder to obtain major apps from the US giant. The Google decision would leave Huawei without the Play Store, the marketplace for most Android apps, and other elements of the mobile operating system.

Facebook -- which is banned in China but has more than two billion users worldwide -- said its decision would affect its core social network as well as applications such as Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp, which each have at least one billion users.