ZTE will continue grow its investment in the U.S. market by 10 percent annually despite having its operations clouded by a congressional probe that is looking into ZTE and Huawei's ties to the Chinese government and other U.S. companies.
ZTE CEO Lixin Cheng reaffirmed the company's commitment to the U.S. market during a speech to public policy leaders at the Georgia-China Alliance's China's Global Outlook 2012 Conference, the company said.
Cheng confirmed that since ZTE entered the U.S. market, the company's supply chain partnership has totaled more than $13.7 billion, and that ZTE will sustain the investment with 10 percent annual growth. ZTE has 10 offices in the United States, including five research and development locations and a logistics center. ZTE USA has more than 400 employees across North America.
"From opening research and development centers to working with a wide range of wireless companies to develop new products, ZTE is committed to expanding the U.S. market through continuous investments," Cheng said. "Put simply, we believe Chinese investment in the U.S. is beneficial for businesses in both countries."
A House intelligence committee recently stepped up its probe of Huawei and ZTE in the U.S. infrastructure market, asking the companies for information on their ties to the Chinese government and other U.S. companies.
Both Huawei and ZTE have long emphatically denied any direct ties to the Chinese government or military, yet both have had minimal success securing network infrastructure contracts from Tier 1 carriers in the U.S. market. However, both companies' device businesses have found favor with U.S. carriers.
For more:
- see this release
- see this CNET article
- see this Politico article
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