Two non-executive directors of Huawei UK have resigned over the company’s stance on the conflict in Ukraine.
The BBC understands that Sir Andrew Cahn and Sir Ken Olisa felt that the company’s failure to be quick to condemn the Russian invasion made their positions untenable.
Huawei UK thanked both men for their “invaluable guidance”.
When asked by BBC News if Huawei would continue doing business with Russia, the company said, “We are not commenting further.”
The BBC understands that both directors felt Huawei should have been quick to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It is believed that both felt that while this was a complex situation for the company, the company’s stance was at odds with their expectations as UK board members.
A Huawei representative said: “Sir Andrew Cahn and Sir Ken Olisa brought considerable business and technology experience to the Board of Huawei UK when they were appointed in 2015 and 2018 respectively.
“Both have strongly supported Huawei’s engagement in the UK and helped maintain the highest standards of corporate governance.”
News of the resignations comes as the US warned Chinese companies against violating restrictions on technology exports to Russia.
China abstained on a United Nations resolution condemning the Russian invasion, but its government also recently expressed “regret” over the military action and said it was “extremely concerned” at the damage to civilians.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told the New York Times Washington could take “devastating” action against Chinese companies that defy Russian sanctions and ban the use of US equipment and software needed to manufacture their products.
Russia “will certainly woo other countries to circumvent our sanctions and export controls,” Ms Raimondo told the newspaper.
The threats echo actions taken against Huawei in 2020, when Donald Trump’s administration included the company on its “Entity List,” which bans it from acquiring technology from US companies without government approval.
The US government said at the time it believed Huawei posed a national security threat, which the company strongly denied.
But the restrictions hit the company’s profits hard and deprived it of access to key technologies.
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