Huawei Device Co Ltd and Huawei Device USA Inc pleaded not guilty to U.S. fraud, trade secrets conspiracy and other charges, and a trial date was set for March 2020, the Justice Department said on Feb. 28.
The units of China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd were arraigned in U.S. District Court in Seattle, and Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez set trial for March 2, 2020.
The charges have added to pressure from the U.S. government on Huawei, the world’s biggest telecommunications equipment maker. Washington is trying to prevent American companies from buying Huawei routers and switches and is pressing allies to do the same.
T-Mobile had accused Huawei of stealing technology called “Tappy,” which mimicked human fingers and was used to test smartphones. Huawei has said the two companies settled their disputes in 2017.
Separately, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn have charged Huawei and its affiliates with bank and wire fraud on allegations that they violated sanctions against Iran. An arraignment date is yet to be set in that case.
A senior U.S. cyber official said on Tuesday that European governments were listening to the U.S. message that Huawei exposes telecommunications networks to security risks.
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