Huawei pleads not guilty in Iran sanctions case
New York— Lawyers for Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei have entered a not-guilty plea in a U.S. case charging the company with violating Iran trade sanctions.
The company was arraigned Thursday on an indictment filed in federal court in Brooklyn.
Prosecutors have accused Huawei of using a Hong Kong front company to trade with Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. They allege that Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei's founder, lied to banks about those dealings while serving as the company's chief financial officer.
Meng was arrested in Canada earlier this year and is awaiting extradition to the U.S. In January, the Department of Justice also charged Huawei and Meng with stealing trade secrets, committing wire fraud and breaking confidentiality agreements. She denies the allegations.
Huawei, the world's No. 2 smartphone maker after Samsung, has denied all the charges in a case that's heightened tensions over trade.
The U.S. has long suspected that China's government uses Huawei to aid in international espionage and thus poses a national security risk. Chinese officials and the telecom hardware giant have consistently denied those allegations.
Huawei's founder and president, Ren Zhengfei, told "CBS This Morning" last month that the company would "never participate in espionage" even if it were required to under Chinese law. In the interview, Ren, who is Meng's father, also said that "arresting Miss Meng Wanzhou is politically motivated."
