A Chinese tech company has accused a US Congress committee of 'bias' after it was labelled a threat to national security.
The United States Congress permanent Intelligence Committee claimed in a report that the Chinese tech firms Huawei and ZTE represented a 'national security risk' because of their relationship with the Chinese government.
In a draft of a report - seen early by Reuters but released on Monday - the committee said that US intelligence should focus on the espionage 'threat' represented by Chinese tech companies.
The report did not detail the specific threat represented by the two companies, but said both firms should be stopped from merging with US businesses.
"Huawei and ZTE cannot be trusted to be free of foreign state influence and thus pose a security threat to the United States and to our systems," the report said.
The panel investigated Huawei and ZTE for 11 months before making its recommendations, and it said both companies had failed to deliver requested information including those which detail its relationship with the Chinese government.
But Huawei has responded to the report by claiming the committee was biased from the start of its investigation.
"We had hoped to ensure that the investigation would be fact-based and objective in its review of our business activities and the global issue of cyber-security," it said.
"However, despite our best effort, the Committee appears to have been committed to a predetermined outcome."
"The report released by the Committee today employs many rumors and speculations to prove non-existent accusations... We have to suspect that the only purpose of such a report is to impede competition and obstruct Chinese ICT companies from entering the US market."
China's Foreign Ministry urged politicians to "set aside prejudice" and said their "investment in the United States embodies the mutually beneficial nature of Sino-American economic and trade relations".