ST. PETERSBURG: At the St. Petersburg forum, Vladimir Putin, Russian leader, condemned US actions against Huawei, a Chinese multinational technology company headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. Huawei provides telecommunications equipment and sells consumer electronics, including smartphones.

Putin warned that Washington’s actions risked “technological war” over digital technology. He said, ‘Huawei is being not only driven out but unceremoniously pushed out of the global market. Some are already saying it’s the first technological war of the coming digital era.’

Putin continued, ‘the US wants to replace a rule-based system where states are treated as equal and sovereign actors with a situation where the US and other economically powerful countries dictate the terms. This is what the US is doing today, trying to expand their jurisdiction over the whole world.’

Both Putin and Xi showed a unified front in the St. Petersburg Economic Forum in a bid to give clear message to Washington. Huawei, a Chinese technological giant, signed a deal with MTS — Russia’s largest telecoms operator — to develop %G technologies and launch a fifth generation network in Russia. (Agencies)