Trump expected to attend White House tech meeting where Huawei will be discussed - sources

ReutersJul 23, 2019 02:06:02 IST

By Alexandra Alper and David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to drop in on a Monday meeting of top technology companies, including the chief executives of Intel Corp and Broadcom Inc , held to discuss blacklisted Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL] and other topics, two people briefed on the matter said.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow will preside over the roundtable, which was confirmed by a White House official on Friday. The official said executives from Alphabet Inc's Google and Micron Technology Inc will also attend and that it had been called to discuss economic matters.

White House officials present will include senior adviser Jared Kushner, Commerce Department Secretary Wilbur Ross and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, one of the people said, adding that executives from Cisco and Western Digital were also invited.

Qualcomm Inc was also invited to the afternoon meeting, which did not appear on Trump's official schedule.

The White House, Intel and Broadcom did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The meeting comes at a time of lingering uncertainty over the future of U.S. companies' ties to Huawei, the world's largest telecommunications equipment maker. It was placed on a U.S. blacklist in May, with the government citing national security concerns.

The move banned U.S. companies from selling most U.S. parts and components to Huawei without special licenses. But Trump said last month sales could resume as he sought to restart trade talks with Beijing.

Clarity on what the new policy towards Huawei will be has been slow to emerge.

Ross has said licenses would be issued where there is no threat to national security. Reuters reported last week that the United States could approve licenses for companies to restart new sales in a matter of weeks.

However, the Washington Post reported on Monday that Huawei secretly helped North Korea build and maintain its commercial wireless network.

That may bolster China hawks in the U.S. government who see Huawei as a real national security risk, over those who seek a more lenient policy to appease Beijing amid ongoing trade talks between the world's two biggest economies.

The United States accuses Huawei of violating Iran sanctions and stealing American intellectual property, and says its equipment could be used to spy for the Chinese government.

(Reporting by Alexandra Alper and David Shepardson; editing by Susan Thomas and Rosalba O'Brien)

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