THE Pentagon is likely to back new U.S. restrictions on Huawei Technologies, reversing earlier opposition to a proposal meant to further crack down on exports to the blacklisted Chinese company, a person briefed on the matter said Wednesday.

The reversal would make it harder for U.S. companies to get around the effective ban on exports to Huawei, the world’s second-largest smartphone maker.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross recently called Defense Secretary Mark Esper to discuss the issue and a meeting on it is expected next week, the source said. A higher-level meeting will take place Feb. 28, when U.S. officials will discuss further curbing technology exports to China and Huawei.

The U.S. Commerce Department said Wednesday that it “continuously reviews and updates export controls to address the challenges of accelerating technology diffusion and innovation.”

The department added that the “scope of the current de minimis threshold for controlled items, as well as the foreign direct product rule, to listed entities, are controls under review.”

Politico first reported the Pentagon’s likely reversal earlier, citing people familiar with internal deliberations.

The U.S. Department of Defense did not respond to requests for comment.

The Trump administration added Huawei to an economic blacklist in May last year, citing “national security” concerns.

In blacklisting the Shenzhen-based company, the U.S. Government had said it had a “reasonable basis to conclude that Huawei is engaged in activities that are contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy interests.”

Huawei has repeatedly denied the accusations.

(SD-Agencies)