Huawei to ask US court to throw out federal ban

Huawei has said that it will ask a US court to throw out US legislation that bars federal agencies from buying its products. The company was due to file the motion for summary judgment on Tuesday (Wednesday in China), said Song Liuping, the firm's legal officer, in a statement carried by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. "The bill directly determines that Huawei is guilty and imposed a large number of restrictions on Huawei," Song was quoted as saying.

The tech giant filed suit against the US bill in March, saying at the time that the US Congress had failed to provide evidence to support its restrictions on Huawei products. A motion for summary judgment aims to seek a judge's decision without going to a full trial.

"It is hoped that the US courts will declare the Huawei ban unconstitutional and prohibit its enforcement," said Song. The court case comes as Huawei also faces a broader US executive order preventing the use of its equipment in the United States and a more damaging US action to blacklist the company, cutting it off from critical American-made components for its products, though a 90-day reprieve was issued.

Washington has warned that Huawei systems could be manipulated by Beijing to spy on other countries and disrupt critical communications, and is urging nations to shun the company in 5G networks. The concerns have escalated as Huawei has risen to become the world leader in telecom networking equipment and one of the top smartphone manufacturers alongside Samsung and Apple.

The firm's proactive battles in US courts signal it is willing to use all means, including national courts, to prevent exclusion from a race to the 5G market -- the future of high-speed telecommunications.