Huawei Board Directors Resign Over Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Two remaining Britons on Huawei UK’s Board of Directors, Andrew Cahn and Ken Olisa handed in their resignations on Wednesday over the Chinese smartphone manufacturer’s silence over the Russian invasion in Ukraine.

Both board members had previously urged the company to criticize the Russian President’s actions against the Ukrainian citizens. Despite the complexity of the matter, both directors felt that their positions on the board were precarious.

A spokesperson from Huawei commented:

Sir Andrew Cahn and Sir Ken Olisa brought considerable experience from the world of business and technology to Huawei UK’s Board of Directors when they were appointed in 2015 and 2018 respectively. Both have shown strong support for Huawei’s commitment to the UK and have helped uphold the highest standards of corporate governance and we thank them for their invaluable guidance.

The news of the resignations comes only days after the United States warned Chinese companies to not meddle with the restrictions imposed on technological imports to Russia.

In a comment to the New York Times, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo stated that Washington may take strict action against Chinese companies opposing Russian sanctions.

Raimondo further added:

Russia is certainly going to be courting other countries to do an end-run around our sanctions and export controls.

Such threats are an echo of actions taken against Huawei in 2020 when Donald Trump’s administration added the company to its ‘entity list.’ The list bans Chinese companies from acquiring technology from the US without government approval.