China on Tuesday urged joint efforts with Australia to provide a fair environment for enterprises from both nations after Australia maintained a broadband ban on Chinese telecom firm Huawei.
"China has always opposed pleading national security as an excuse for disturbing normal economic and trade cooperation between two countries," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a daily news briefing.
"We hope that both countries can work together to create favorable conditions and a fair environment for enterprises from both sides to conduct cooperation based on mutual respect and equality in line with the principles of market economy," Hua told reporters.
Australia on Tuesday maintained a ban issued by the previous Labor administration to bar Huawei from bidding for the country's high-speed national Internet program.
Hua said China and Australia have kept close contacts since the new Australia administration was established in September.
As important countries in the Asia-Pacific region, China and Australia share broad common interests, she said, adding that it accords with both sides' core interests to conduct mutually beneficial cooperation based on equality and mutual respect.
Huawei Australia was banned by the former Labor administration earlier last year from tendering in the National Broadband Network project over security reasons. Shortly after that, theUnited States also issued a congressional report, saying that Huawei and ZTE, another Chinese telecom company, pose a security threat to the United States and should be barred from U.S. contracts and acquisitions.
The U.S. report was dismissed by Huawei Australia Chairman John Lord as "protectionism," not security.
Source: Xinhua
