MIT concludes financing and research ties with China's Huawei and ZTE
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology concludes all research and finance links with Chinese technology companies Huawei and ZTE in the light of recent US federal probes, according to a letter from university officials.
MIT is one of several prestigious academic institutions in the United States to announce an end to the ties with Huawei, Stanford University, the University of California, Berkeley and University of Minnesota has cut all future research partnerships with Chinese telecommunications companies under the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post.
"MIT does not accept new obligations or renew existing ones with Huawei and ZTE or their respective subsidiaries due to federal investigations of violations. sanction restrictions, "MIT Associate Provost Richard Lester and Vice President of Research Maria Zuber wrote in a letter to the faculty Wednesday.
In a 201[ads1]7 presentation Ation by Huawei, MIT was cited as a partner in Huawei Innovation Research Program The program is a global initiative to identify and support world-class faculty members who work for the innovation of common inter In essence, SCMP reported the technical giant as said.
The halt in financing for Huawei and ZTE comes at a time of increased tension between the US and China.
US lawmakers have said that ZTE and Huawei equipment can pose national security risks, claiming that companies' products can support Chinese espionage. Both companies have denied the allegations.
In January, the US Department of Justice told Huawei that they should have violated US sanctions against Iran and steal trade secrets from US telecom T-Mobile.
However, Huawei and ZTE cannot be
MIT's plans to cut ties with Huawei and ZTE are part of a larger plan to strengthen their internal evaluation of international partners, the letter to the faculty said.
] "Commitments with some countries – currently China, Russia and Saudi Arabia – deserve further faculty and administrative review beyond the usual evaluations that all international projects receive," writes MIT officials.
MIT's "increased risk" assessment will pay special attention to "intellectual property, export control, data security and access, economic competitiveness, national security and political, civil and human rights," the letter said.
Huawei and ZTE did not immediately respond to sent requests for comment on MIT's decision.
For more on MIT's cut in financing links with Huawei and ZTE, see the article in the South China Morning Post.
