In January, former president Donald Trump’s administration blacklisted Xiaomi for having ties to the Chinese military. Now the real reason behind Xiaomi’s blacklisting of the United States is revealed.Shortly after being blacklisted by the US government, Xiaomi denied the allegations and said they were not owned, controlled or linked to the Chinese military.
Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported the real reason behind the ban on Xiaomi through court documents registered by the US Defense Ministry. The document says Xiaomi was banned because of the award its founder and CEO Lei Jun received from the Chinese government.
In 2019, Lei became one of 100 executives in China who received the ‘Outstanding Socialism Builder with Chinese Characteristics’ awarded by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). ). Xiaomi also promotes the award that Lei received through his biography page on the Xiaomi official website and in its annual financial reports. The document also mentions Xiaomi’s investments in technology including 5G and artificial intelligence
The US Defense Ministry says MIIT is a government body regulating China’s ‘civil-military fusion’. Under this program, China collaborates with private businesses to create technology that can be used by the military. After being blacklisted by the Donald Trump administration, US companies and investors can no longer invest in Xiaomi and must divest before November 11, 2021.
The consequences of this policy are already being felt by Xiaomi. Recently, the world’s third-largest cellphone vendor was removed from the global and China index by FTSE Russell following an executive order signed by Trump. Meanwhile Xiaomi is not standing still in facing this policy. In February they sued the US government and called this policy unlawful and unconstitutional.
