USA's 'groundless' Huawei crackdown 'typical economic bullying': China

China accused the United States of resorting to "typical economic bullying" with regard to the latest crackdown on Huawei, which has led to the Chinese telecom giant suffering setbacks in major economies like Japan.

Beijing's statement comes as the USA and China are locked in a bitter trade dispute which has seen the two sides exchange a string of tariff hikes.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters here that "some people in the United States do not want China to have legitimate rights to develop and attempt to impede China's development process," according to Xinhua.

He further said that Washington uses its state power to clamp down on Huawei without any factual basis. "This is typical economic bullying," Wang stated.Speaking on the sidelines of the now-concluded Shanghai Cooperation Council meeting, the Chinese minister added that "such an egocentric approach by the United States will not win the recognition and support of the international community."

Recently, Huawei's latest smartphone model took a hit in Japan after major carriers suspended its preorders along with postponing the phone's sales.

The Japanese carriers have raised concerns regarding Huawei's capability of providing a reliable supply of the phone in the wake of the US-China trade spat. Huawei Technologies Japan has abstained from commenting on the issue.

This is the latest in Huawei's mounting list of worries, especially after US President Donald Trump blacklisted the Chinese company, citing national security risks. Following this, Google cut off Huawei's access to future Android updates.

The company's Chief Financial Officer, Meng Wanzhou, is currently under house arrest in Canada, after being detained last year. The United States seeks Meng's extradition on suspicions of circumventing US sanctions on Iran.

( With inputs from ANI )