(This Feb. 24 story corrects paragraph 12 to show Huawei was world’s third-largest smartphone vendor last year, not second largest)
BARCELONA (Reuters) – China’s Huawei welcomed comments from President Donald Trump about the future of U.S. mobile communications on Sunday and asserted its position as a world-leading smartphone producer as Washington and Beijing seek a trade war ceasefire.
At the center of the imbroglio is Huawei Technologies, accused by Washington of sanctions busting, intellectual property theft and facilitating Chinese state espionage operations.
Speaking ahead of the mobile industry’s biggest global event which begins in Barcelona on Monday, Huawei Chairman Guo Ping reiterated his company’s position that it has never and would never allow any country to spy through its equipment.
Trump’s tweets on Thursday did not specifically mention Huawei, the world’s largest producer of mobile network equipment, but appeared to soften earlier U.S. statements that it should be barred from Western networks on security grounds.
“I have noticed the president’s Twitter, he said that the U.S. needs faster and smarter 5G, or even 6G in the future, and he has realized that the U.S. is lagging behind in this respect, and I think his message is clear and correct,” Guo said, speaking through an interpreter.
He said the United States did not represent the whole world and called for equipment makers, network operators and governments to work together to devise trustworthy standards to manage cyber security risks.
The Huawei logo is displayed ahead of the Mobile World Congress (MWC 19) in Barcelona, Spain, February 24, 2019. REUTERS/Sergio Perez
“We need to have unified standard that should be verifiable. It should not be based on politics,” Guo said.
FOLDING PHONE, RIGID PRICE TAG
Huawei also sought to reaffirm its position as one of the world’s leading technology companies, unveiling a folding 5G smartphone to an audience of media and analysts in Barcelona.
Huawei, the world’s third-largest smartphone vendor after Samsung and Apple, said it had taken the lead in developing phones for 5G – which promises super-fast internet speeds – because it was also involved in developing the networks.
CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 
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