Chinese company under fire for potential spying role

A Chinese telecommunications giant that operates in New Zealand is under fire in the US for its potential spying role.

A US congressional report says Huawei could be using its access to critical infrastructure to carry out economic and military espionage for the Chinese government.

CNN's Stan Grant says this issue is an example of the trust deficit between the US and China.

"One of the allegations being raised here is that Huawei has close links to the People's Liberation Army. The company denies that, but its president and founder was a former member of the military."

Stan Grant says this is a red button issue in an election year.

"This is not the first time that Huawei has faced these types of obstacles. Australia blocked the company from bidding ... to establish its national broadband network precisely because of these types of security concerns."

Huawei operates in New Zealand and the Green Party is calling for a review of its involvement in our broadband rollout as a result of this report.

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