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Lawmakers from both parties have been at odds with President
Donald Trump over his decision last week to lift his earlier ban
on U.S. companies selling to ZTE, allowing China's
second-largest telecommunications equipment maker to resume
business.
An amendment backed by two Republicans and two Democrats would
have reinstated the sanctions but was stripped out of the
must-pass defense policy bill, lawmakers said on Friday.
The change was made as lawmakers sought to hammer out
differences between the Senate and House versions of the
National Defense Authorization Act, which authorizes military
spending but is generally used as a vehicle for a broad range of
policy matters.
The ZTE measure was co-sponsored by Republican senators Marco
Rubio and Tom Cotton, Democrat Chris Van Hollen, and Chuck
Schumer, the top Democrat in the Senate.
Schumer said in a statement that he opposed removing the
provision.
"By stripping the Senate's tough ZTE sanctions provision from
the defense bill, President Trump – and the congressional
Republicans who acted at his behest – have once again made
President Xi and the Chinese government the big winners," he
said in a statement.
Rubio called the change "bad news" in a tweet, lamenting that it
increased chances ZTE stays in business.
Van Hollen lashed out at Republican leaders for refusing to lend
their backing.
"Despite bipartisan support to put American national security
before jobs in China, the Republican leadership refused to take
any real, substantive action on ZTE. Instead, they joined
President Trump in bowing to Beijing. It's weak and shameful,"
he said in a statement.
ZTE could not immediately be reached for comment.
ZTE had made false statements about disciplining 35 employees
involved with illegally shipping U.S.-origin goods to Iran and
North Korea, Commerce Department officials said. That led to a
ban ordered by the department in April that forced U.S.
companies to stop selling U.S. components to ZTE for its
smartphones and networking gear. Without these goods, it largely
ceased major operations.
The Commerce Department removed the ban on ZTE in mid-July,
shortly after the company deposited $400 million in a U.S. bank
escrow account as part of a settlement reached last month. The
settlement also included a $1 billion penalty that ZTE paid in
June.
A U.S. investigation into ZTE was launched after Reuters
reported in 2012 that the company had signed contracts to ship
hardware and software worth millions of dollars to Iran from
some of the best-known U.S. technology companies.
(https://reut.rs/2GbpCmO)
(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Rosalba
O'Brien)
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