The Trump administration could lift restrictions on U.S. companies selling components and software to China’s ZTE and is currently working on details of a deal with the Chinese, according people familiar with the matter.
They added that should the deal be finalized, the penalty threatening ZTE Corp. would be lifted and the company would then have to make big changes in management, board seats and possibly pay significant fines. Beijing, on its part, has promised to remove tariffs on American farm products worth billions of dollars, even though the White House has not offered any quid pro quo.
“The White House was meticulous in affirming that the case is a law enforcement matter and not a bargaining chip in negotiations,” one person said, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The ban was imposed by the Commerce Department after the technology firm admitted earlier in March that it had been sending U.S. goods to Iran and North Korea, thus violating U.S. sanctions on these countries. As a result, tech giant ZTE faced the risk of bankruptcy.
President Donald Trump later said in a tweet he was working with China’s President Xi Jinping ”to give massive Chinese phone company, ZTE, a way to get back into business, fast.” However, despite the fact that negotiations between China and the U.S. are moving in a positive direction, some are warning that the deal could still fall apart.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to arrive in Washington this week, where he will continue talks on ZTE, according to officials involved in his trip. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who oversees the ZTE case, will visit Beijing next week.
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