AsianScientist (May 31, 2019) – Scientists affiliated with the Chinese technology company Huawei have been banned from participating in the peer review and editorial processes of more than 200 journals published under the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The move comes amid trade tensions between China and the US, as well as concerns over the use of Huawei technology in 5G infrastructure.
According to a statement by IEEE, the Institute is complying with US Export Administration Regulations (EAR), which is overseen by the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry Security (BIS). On May 16, 2019 the BIS added Huawei to its ‘Entity List,’ which means that license applications by Huawei to buy, sell or transfer commodities, software and technology in the US will be presumptively denied. The IEEE statement notes that “violations of the EAR carry significant civil or criminal penalties, including fines or prison sentences.”
However, IEEE members affiliated with Huawei can still participate in IEEE meetings and conferences, exercise their voting rights within the Institute, sponsor and accept IEEE awards, as well as attend and submit proposals at IEEE standards development meetings.
Chinese academics have reacted to the ban with disdain. One professor at Peking University’s School of Electronic and Computer Engineering (Professor Zhang Haixia, who has no ties with Huawei), has decided to quit the editorial board of the IEEE’s Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems and withdraw from IEEE’s NANO conference in protest.
The IEEE added that it will further advise the IEEE community should the US government “clarify the application of the EAR with respect to peer review.”
———
Copyright: Asian Scientist Magazine; Photo: Huawei.
Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of AsianScientist or its staff.
