The US/Xiaomi saga has been escalating quite quickly. If you haven’t read the news lately, Xiaomi was banned from receiving US investments under the Trump administration.
The company was deemed to be affiliated with the People’s Liberation Army and was added to the blacklist as a “Communist Chinese Military company.” As a result, American companies and citizens are barred from investing capital in the company.
In an official announcement, the Beijing-based company termed the blacklisting as “unconstitutional” and has filed a legal complaint in the US District Court of Columbia.
“Xiaomi faces imminent and irreparable damage if the designation remains in place,” the company said in the legal complaint. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen were named as defendants in the lawsuit.
It is worth noting that Xiaomi is not on the same blacklist as Huawei. For the latter, it is a more damaging list as it was barred from conducting business with American companies.
With the new US Biden administration officially in place, we’ll have to wait and see if both parties come to a gentle resolution, as compared to their previous relationship with Trump.
Next: Honor launches The V40, their first phone since being sold by Huawei
Alfred Gitonga is a passionate tech news writer with a deep interest in smartphones and related technologies. He is a staff writer at Mobitrends.co.ke.
