Huawei condemns US move extending ban to 46 more affiliates

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The US government has extended its Huawei ban to 46 more affiliates, dashing the company's hopes that it would be lifted. Instead, the temporary license allowing Huawei to procure American parts for existing products has been extended another 90 days.

Huawei didn't mince words with its response:

"It's clear that this decision, made at this particular time, is politically motivated and has nothing to do with national security," the Chinese company said in a statement sent to the press. "Attempts to suppress Huawei's business won't help the United States achieve technological leadership."

Those 46 Huawei affiliates have been added to the US government's Entity List, which restricts business they can do in the US. But the point of the 90-day license extension isn't to spend more time mulling over whether to lift the ban - it's reportedly to give US rural telecoms time to extricate Huawei products from their infrastructure.

“As we continue to urge consumers to transition away from Huawei’s products, we recognize that more time is necessary to prevent any disruption,” US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement, according to The New York Times.

• More: The foldable Huawei Mate X is coming later than we thought

Dwindling hope for Huawei in the US

When the 90-day reprieve was first announced in July, it was seen as a potentially promising move for a company drawn into Trump's trade conflict with China. But this update doesn't seem like good news for Huawei's ambitions in the US. 

It's also not promising for Huawei's ambiguous situation with Google. While the Chinese company's phones have gotten renewed access to Android content and security updates, it's anybody's guess if and when that could be rescinded should the ban progress.

If not, Huawei has been developing HarmonyOS, the cross-platform operating system (much like Google Fuscia) that could in theory be used for the company's slate of phones, like the upcoming Huawei Mate 30 Pro. 

HarmonyOS was finally revealed at Huawei Developer Conference in late July - and it's coming first on the Honor Vision smart TV. There's no official word on when it will be ready to deploy on phones, tablets, or other devices.

• Still a Huawei fan? Check out our list of the best Huawei phones

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