Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. is once again being targeted by U.S. lawmakers with a new bill introduced to the Senate Thursday that would ban the company from buying or selling U.S. patents.

Sponsored by Senators Marco Rubio and John Cornyn, the bill seeks to enable the federal government to block companies on the U.S. government trade blacklist from buying, selling or exclusively licensing U.S. patents, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Despite a partial rescinding of a trade ban imposed on it by the Trump administration June 30, Huawei remains on the trade blacklist. The bill, while naming no specific company, is clearly targeting Huawei.

Putting aside general paranoia in Washington D.C. about all things Chinese, the roots of the bill stem from the initial Huawei ban and the company’s actions since.

Since the ban was put in place, Huawei started pressuring Verizon Communications Inc. to pay licensing fees on more than 200 patents, mostly 5G-related, that the Chinese company holds. Huawei was also reported to be threatening to hike royalties on U.S. companies that rely on its patented tech June 20 in an attempt to fight back against losses caused by the Trump administration’s ban.

Not surprisingly, saber-rattling by a Chinese company wasn’t well received.

The new bill would also allow the federal government to intervene in any domestic infringement case involving an entity on the U.S. Commerce Department’s blacklist. In the event companies on the list were to file suit, they would have to notify both the Justice Department and Patent and Trademark Office, providing them with information on the alleged patent infringement, financial implications and damages sought.

The bill will cause an escalation in tensions between the U.S. and China at a time when President Trump has been attempting to de-escalate the trade war between the two countries.

It’s also a bad look for the U.S. when one of its demands in trade negotiations is better enforcement of intellectual property and patent rights in China. Undermining existing patent law and specifically targeting China’s biggest smartphone maker when it comes to patents will give the Middle Kingdom justification to keep ignoring similar laws within its own borders where the patents and IP involve American firms.

Photo: Duncan Riley