US Senate Preparing To Block Chinas ZTE Return After Trumps Deal

The US Senate leaders are mulling an amendment in the defense spending bill to block return of ZTE to the American market, a move that would likely upset President Trump whose administration reached a deal with China's telecom giant to continue to operate in the country.

WASHINGTON, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Jun, 2018 ) :The US Senate leaders are mulling an amendment in the defense spending bill to block return of ZTE to the American market, a move that would likely upset President Trump whose administration reached a deal with China's telecom giant to continue to operate in the country.

The Trump administration announced recently that it had reached a deal with ZTE to allow it continue do business with American firms, reversing an earlier decision to impose a 7-year ban on the company for violating the terms of its 2017 penalty agreement.

Last week, the administration announced that under the deal reached with the Chinese company, ZTE will pay an additional $1 billion fine, change its management team and hire officials to ensure sanctions compliance in exchange for lifting the ban.

However, Senate leaders from both the ruling Republican and opposition Democratic parties joined hands to block the deal through an amendment in the $716 billion defense spending bill, a report by the online news website The POLITICO said.

The move seen as a rebuke to President Trump came as the American leader held a historic summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at a hotel in Singapore to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.

A Republican Senator said that if the amendment becomes law, ZTE will not be able to return to the American market. The amendment will have to be signed by President Trump who has the authority to veto it.

While, the Senate deal is reached through a bipartisan agreement, there is still opposition to the amendment. According to the report, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, who heads the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee said more information was needed from the intelligence community about ZTE.

Another Republican Senator, John Thune, was quoted as saying by the report that he suspected if there was enough support to undo the ZTE deal by the Trump administration. The Senate on Monday voted to start debate on its version of the fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization act to consider the amendment.